Star Wars 1. Reflections of a simple soldier

The Force Slayer

Chapter 1: Reflections of a simple soldier

War, that's all they ever talk about, war. Well, to be more precise I suppose what everyone talks about is the Empire, but really the Empire is just a conduit for war. A well refined and efficient war machine, that's what the Empire is and everyone has their place. What can you do for the Empire? How will you give your life to the Empire? That's what they asked me. My teachers, my parents, and hell even my so called friends would ask me that. It made me sick. Why should I give my life to the Empire? Why should I care about getting revenge for what happened over 1000 years ago? When I was young I would question my parents about this and I found the answers to be quite painful. Every time I would bring up the Empire in a non-patriotic way I was severely beaten. I loathed my parents for this, but it wasn't the pain that made me hate them. No, rather it was their undying, unquestioning patriotism to the Empire that disgusted me. It was as if they worshiped the Empire. Needless to say I quickly learned not to bring up my opinions again. In fact I got very good at concealing my thoughts as well as my opinions so that every one of those stupid psychologists would think I was a true patriot through and through. Looking back on it now I wonder if my parents were truly that patriotic, or were simply trying to protect me. I guess I'll never know, hard to have candor conversation when the Empire is always looking over your shoulder.

The evil stupid Republic, they must be punished; they must be destroyed, for the glory of the Empire. I've heard that phrase since as long as I can remember. It never made sense to me. If the Republic is so stupid how did they nearly exterminate us 1000 years ago? From what I heard about the Republic it was a wonder they hadn't already destroyed themselves. No one else seemed to think this though so and as a kid I felt like a genius in a room full of idiots. However, I was not nearly as smart as I liked to think I was. If I was intelligent I would have studied hard in school and tried to become an engineer. That way I could help build ships away from the front lines. The pay would be good and I wouldn't have to risk my life for this stupid war. Studying was for 'nerds' though, besides running and shooting was way more fun. So that's what I did, I ran and I practised shooting and I got pretty damn good at it. I was running marathons regularly by the time I was 12 and had gotten a perfect score at the local gun range. I was the fastest in my class and the best shooter and I knew it. It wasn't long before the Empire took notice too and by the time I was 16 I was drafted into the army into a special ops unit for training. I would be forced to risk my life for the Empire after all. I wasn't the genius in the room; I was the dumbest of them all. Hell, I was even dumber than the Republic.

Control and order that is what the Empire thrived on. Unlike the Republic where corruption and crime were rampant, the Empire was virtually crime free. While the Republic response to crime was pathetic by any standards, the Empire has a very strict policy against crime. In fact you would have to be mad to commit a crime in the Empire considering almost everything was considered treason. So unless you were high ranking enough in government or military that you had enough people to cover your ass, you didn't even dream of committing a crime. Unless of course if you were one them. The rules didn't apply to them. They could do as they damn well pleased. It didn't matter if you were a simple soldier or the general to the largest army in the fleet, they treated you like vermin. To them all we are just servants to do their bidding. For they are the gods of the galaxy, they are the Sith. I had never met a Sith in person before joining the military and nothing could prepare me for what I saw. I say the word meet very loosely, Sith never actually talked to recruits at training, but it didn't make them any less terrifying. As they walked around headquarters with their black hooded cloaks and their cold dead eyes, they sent chills down everyone's spine. I had only feared death before being forced into the military, but now I feared the Sith as well. I hated them and feared them and because I feared them I hated them even more.

The Sith however at this point were the least of my problems. While I didn't want to join the army all together, I was glad that was put into special ops training. Special op units were better trained and better equipped than basic infantry. That meant they were more valuable and were less likely to put on suicide missions. Basic infantry however were placed wherever they were needed and while they were certainly better trained and equipped than the average republic solider, they were still very disposable. What I didn't know is that to motivate soldiers in each spec ops unit at the end of training they cut two thirds of each group and sent them to basic infantry, where they are promptly sent to the front lines. What's worse is that either my class in school was the slowest and worst shooters in the galaxy or my group was filled with best soldiers in the Empire. Looking back on it, it was probably a combination of the two. Whichever was the case it didn't matter, I was one of the weakest soldiers there and if wanted to stay I would have to train harder then I had ever during my entire life, much harder. Of course I say this as if there was extra time to train. Since this is where the Empire determined where you would end up if you weren't cut, they had to test you in everything. Military operations from infiltration to mass assault were taught and practised as well as any weapon and military equipment the empire had to offer. The time you were given off was to make sure you had enough energy to make it through the program. I unfortunately did not have the luxury to use this time to rest, so instead I trained and hoped that sheer adrenaline and determination I would help me make it through. I focused on my strengths, short to medium ranged weapons in close quarter combat, in hopes that my weaknesses would be overlooked. It seemed to work as I quickly rose up in rank, though I feared it would not be enough as I was still on the verge of being cut and exhaustion had started to kick in. It was at this point that she showed up. Most Sith couldn't care less about us new recruits, but she was different. She was very excited to meet us, because unlike other Sith who were obsessed with gaining power, she only cared about one thing. Her name was Lord Odyne, and all she cared about was pain.

They called it information concealment training, we called it hell. The Empire decided that to simulate capture we would undergo torture resistance training at the end of the program. The idea was that if you were captured by the enemy you would be likely be already exhausted from battle. However, they conveniently didn't take into account the Republic laws on interrogation. The truth be told I suspect this entire training was meant to simply please the Sith, because you would never be tortured this ruthlessly in the Republic. Along with Lord Odyne there was small man who acted as your doctor. He was colloquially known as the 'Holy Man' and he was quite literally your life line. Sith are famously known for being the best torturers in the galaxy; however they are also known for getting too carried away. A lot time and money was spent on training us and we still needed to be able to fight once the training was over. The 'Holy Man' measured your vitals and determined if the torture had to be toned down or all together stopped. I don't know how he managed it, but Lord Odyne always listened to him. I can only imagine what he had done for the Sith to give him that much respect. Most of the time it didn't matter as recruits usually gave up long before their bodies did. Each of us was given a code word and we graded on how long we lasted before either giving up the code word or our body vitals became too low. Most people dreaded the training, I on the other day couldn't be happier. Despite being completely exhausted and in desperate need of rest I looked forward to this opportunity. It would be the first time I could openly defy the Sith. I would never give her my codeword, I would never break.

The first day was physical torture. Lord Odyne had us all go through a series of torture machines that ranged from classic water boarding to the electric shock chair. While these were all incredibly painful, no one gave up and Lord Odyne actually seemed bored. Then suddenly a smile came across her face and we all shivered in fear, the serums had arrived. The serums allowed the Empire to simulate events that would normally cause permanent damage. They were all worse than you could possibly imagine. One of them even managed to simulate being eaten and burned alive simultaneously. By the end of the day two thirds of the group had given up. This made all the instructors very pleased, it was apparently a new record. Most of the time only a quarter of the group made it to the second day. It is hard to imagine, but the second day was far worse. It is to this day the most painful experience of my entire life. Unlike the day before there were no machines or serums, just you and Lord Odyne in a small dark room. The doctor was in another room monitoring your brain waves and then would signal the Sith to begin. The serums were indeed painful, but not perfect. If you concentrated hard enough you could force your brain into recognizing that the pain you felt was not real and eventually the pain would go away. However when Lord Odyne mentally attacked you there was no escape, you simply had to endure it. The pain was so intense it could not be described; there was simply nothing to compare it to. Most of the men only lasted an hour; the stronger willed soldiers lasted a couple hours more. I on the other hand kept going; each time she attacked it simply fueled my defiance even more. It mortified me though when I realized my defiance wasn't annoying her, in fact it excited her. She saw me as a challenge, someone whom she did not have to hold back on. It felt like years had gone by and I finally couldn't take it anymore. I gave up. In actuality it had not been years, it had been 24 hours and by the end she was smiling so much you would think this was the most fun she had in years. In fact it seemed that all the instructors were smiling. No one had lasted that long in quite some time and they seemed to think their training played a significant part in my endurance. I was not smiling however, I had failed. I tried with every fiber of my being to defy the Sith and I had failed.

Apparently the body does not like being pushed to the absolute limit and then subjected to physical and mental torture, because after the torture had finished I collapsed. I was out for an entire month and during that time a lot of controversy occurred over my current situation. According to the numbers I was ranked just one person below the top third. Normally that wouldn't matter as the Empire was very strict when it came to its numbers. However, this time there were a lot more other factors to consider. For one thing most soldiers' military strength here increased linearly, however I appeared to increase exponentially. Many of the instructors were curious on how long this trend would last and thought that sending me to basic infantry seemed a waste of potential. There was also the small issue of the information concealment training. The training was not meant to determine where you ranked but rather how much Intel you would receive on future assignments. If you couldn't make it through the first day you were only sent on missions that were not information sensitive. If made it to the second day, but only lasted an hour you may be sent on information sensitive missions, but the Intel given would be vague and strictly need to know. Fully passing the training meant lasting over three hours and if this was accomplished you would be authorized to top secret Intel should it proved necessary. Lasting 12 hours though, that showed determination. Such determination could prove very useful on the battlefield. In the end it was actually the Sith that tipped the balance. Lord Odyne not only insisted that I not be cut, but that I be put into one the most elite military units there was. I like to think she did this because she saw what a potentially strong soldier I could become. However, at the time it seemed more likely she simply did it to thank me for being so much fun. One did not simply defy a Sith's request though, so with only a small amount of grumbling I was sent to one of the most elite units there was. I was sent to the Death Troopers. Their job was to hunt the most dangerous soldiers the Republic had to offer. The Death Troopers hunted Jedi.

The Death Troopers were a relatively new unit. Originally it was thought that the best way to deal with a Jedi was to send a Sith. However, most of the time the more powerful Sith were too busy playing power games with other Sith to bother hunting Jedi. That left only the weaker Sith who wished to prove to the others in the order how strong they were. While they were still often successful, there we many times where a Sith would be sent out and would never return again. Not that anybody in Empire would mind of course. I always felt alone when it came to my feelings on the Empire, but I was not alone in my hatred of the Sith. Many soldiers and officers despised the Sith for their lack of respect for chain of commanded and just their arrogance in general. The military decided that they needed a more reliable solution to the Jedi problem and Death Troopers were the solution. Death Troopers were highly trained and well equipped soldiers and we specialized in the capture and or death of Jedi. We also wore black armor instead of white as to strike fear into the hearts of the Jedi. Or perhaps we wore black simply because the engineers who designed our suits thought it looked cool.

The instructors in special ops training ended up being correct. My skills did increase exponentially, at least for a short time. While the training had gotten harder, it was also more specialized and mostly just reinforced what we learned in special ops training. I also must have been a late developer, because while the training was harder I found it to be much easier, especially now that I could focus on what I was good at. I quickly rose up in ranks and became one of the top soldiers among the new recruits. During training we would watch videos of Jedi to understand their fighting style to learn how to bring them down. Despite claiming to be complete opposites, the Jedi and the Sith were actually very similar to each other. Unlike regular soldiers, the Jedi and Sith wielded a weapon called a light saber. The light saber was effectively a laser sword that could cut through anything and could block and reflect laser fire. The Jedi typically had green or blue light sabers, while the Sith predominately had red. The colors apparently had significant meaning, but I hadn't bothered to learn what they were. The Sith also wore far less armor than regular soldiers and the Jedi wore even less armor than the Sith. This meant that a single laser blast to the head could actually take one of them down. The Jedi though, moved unbelievably fast and no matter how many men were firing at them it was next to impossible to hit them anywhere, let alone the head. They never used any ranged weapons though, which I found incredibly stupid. Well, I suppose they technically did have one ranged weapon, the Force. It was what separated us from the Sith and Jedi. It was the source of their power. The Force not only allowed both the Sith and the Jedi the ability to move and jump far faster and higher than any normal being, it also gave them psychic and telekinesis powers. Sith and Jedi who were strong with the Force could throw objects of massive size and could seemingly stop laser blasts in mid air. The Force was not just restricted to objects though, both Sith and Jedi could use the Force on people as well. In fact it was common place for Sith to Force choke officers that they didn't like.

It was during this training that I truly discovered why Lord Odyne did what she did. While Lord Odyne was obsessed with pain, it did not make her stupid. When probing my mind she found my undying hatred for the Sith, but more importantly she found my incredible determination to beat them. Despite their Force powers, I would never stop training until I was better than them. She suspected that this undying hatred, this unending determination would apply to the Jedi as well. She was not wrong. I soon learned that the Jedi also thought themselves as gods, but what was worse was that that despite their actions they always insisted they had the moral high ground. I later grew to hate them even more as I found that they did things that were just as bad as the Sith, and in some cases even worse.

By the time I was 19, I was finished my training and was ready for the battle field. It would be quite some time though before I would encounter any Republic soldiers, let alone any Jedi. The Empire intelligence gathering was very good when it came to movements in the Republic, but was rather pathetic when it came to the Jedi. My first experience in battle came when our unit of new recruits accidently ran into a Republic patrol unit. No matter how much rigorous training you did, nothing fully prepared you for the battle field. Some of the recruits would freeze in place in sheer fear, unable to move. Others, who were masters of all battle tactics, seemingly forget everything they had learned and would simply charge at the enemy head on, only to be mowed down horribly. With all the laser fire and explosions going off all around you it was tempting to stay at the back and simply wait for it all to be over. However, I had learned that soldiers who tried to hide in the back during battles were forced later to the front lines on pain of death. The Empire did not tolerate cowardice. So I moved forward, but I did not charge at the enemy. I analyzed the battle field and I quickly found that there safe spots throughout, much like different eyes in a raging multitude of storms. The eyes were constantly moving though, so you had to be quick to stay in them. There were a few close calls but unlike many of my brethren, I survived the encounter. In the battles to come I got better at analyzing the battle field and a soon learned there were not only 'safe spots' but areas where I could utterly destroy the enemy. You see battle was not just about having good speed and reaction time. It was about knowing where and when to fire, before the enemy was even there. It was not something you could train for; rather it simply must be learned through experience and instinct. I had never wanted to be a soldier, but I had to admit I was pretty damn good at it. Hell, I even enjoyed it a little. Then I encountered my first Jedi and all hell broke loose.

The Empire had sent an entire battalion to deal with two Jedi they had found. I thought it was completely and utterly overkill. I couldn't be more wrong. Everything I had learned in previous encounters had been completely useless here. There were no safe spots when fighting the Jedi, it was all just one big chaotic storm and the only way to survive was move as fast as physically possible. Tanks and other vehicles were being thrown by them in every direction and men fell to the ground by their own laser fire. I didn't care though, this was my chance. I would beat them. I would survive and I would beat them. However, I didn't beat them; I didn't even come close to hitting them. I did survive though, which was better than most. Our entire battalion had been wrecked and the Jedi had escaped. In the future we would be more successful at capturing or killing the Jedi. I also found that as I became more accustomed to fighting Jedi I eventually was able to hit them. I still had yet to kill or capture one myself though. However, I was surviving and making progress and at this point that's all that mattered.

Since the Death Troopers job was to hunt the mortal enemy of the Sith, we saw more of them than any other unit did. Their condescending attitude and forceful nature took its toll on all of us, especially the officers. I noticed that they were far worse when they were being watched and it made me wonder if like soldiers in the Empire, they simply were acting the way they were expected to. However, they seemed to do it far too easily to be forced into it. Finally one of the officers couldn't take it anymore and decided to stand up to one them. To give him credit he still looked determined as his head rolled across floor. That was the day I got my first promotion.

I never thought myself much of a leader, but the pay was better and I got better equipment so I was happy. It also meant that instead of just pretending I didn't receive the stupid order's my superiors gave, I could give my own. I like to think it was my own cunning and overall performances that lead to my further promotions, but reality it was that my superiors kept dying by one way or another. As an officer I had gathered quite a reputation for being...different. Most officers tried to inspire their troops and calmly give orders to their soldiers from a distance. I didn't have time for such nonsense. I was brutal, to the point, and apparently swore more than most both on and off the battlefield. I also didn't hang back, but instead moved up to the front lines with the rest of my men. The Empires strict entry to special ops training meant that only the best were assigned to the Death Troopers. However, this also meant that basic infantry had a surplus of soldiers, while the rest of units were always in short supply. To solve this problem the basic infantry soldiers would fill the gaps from mission to mission in the other units. The Empire often didn't tell you though just how many of your men were from basic infantry so if you wanted something done on the battlefield you had better do it yourself. It was also why I didn't bother trying to inspire my troops, since I figured most would be dead by the next day anyway. Both my willingness effectiveness to fight in the front lines had gained me the respect of many of the soldiers in the Death Troopers. However, they also thought was a bit mad. Perhaps they were right, but who could blame me. This whole war was madness.

"1st officer David Baramore report to the bridge." said a voice through the speaker. Well I suppose it was time I stop dwelling on the past. If I was going to survive this war I would have to focus on the present.


	2. Just another day on the job

Chapter 2: Just another day on the Job

I had been fighting in the war for nearly a decade and much had changed during that time. I was 6'3 and being that tall had left room for a lot scars I had collected over the years. The first came in the early years. I had been forced to remove my helmet in battle and some shrapnel had dug itself above my right eye and on my right cheek. It left a deep vertical scar above my right eye and some diagonal scars along my right check. The next major scar came much later. I had landed a hit on a Jedi; in retaliation he Forced pushed me into some Republic spaceship debris and left me for dead. He was a fool; I would not die that easily. It would however, leave a massive scar that stretched across my entire back in the form of a 'V'. I would be known as 'V-back' for quite some time after that. I would collect smaller scars throughout the years on my chest, arms and legs, but what was more notable were the laser burns. Our armor could completely repel the basic Republic weaponry; however the more elite soldiers that tended to escort the Jedi carried weapons that could kill us after extended fire. I never let myself get hit often in battle, but it was impossible to avoid everything and after over 9 years the laser blasts the damage had taken its toll. Laser blast wounds never fully heal. I had white skin before the military, but after 9 years of fighting I wasn't sure what color skin I had. I suppose I was lucky, all my wounds were technically superficial. I had not lost any body parts, my smooth black hair was still there and I could still see clearly through my brown dark eyes. Unlike some of the men, I was not built like a tank. My muscles were small and wirily, I was built for speed. I was not weak though, if needed I could certainly do some heavy lifting. I was just not obsessed with weight lifting. Being able to lift 500 pounds didn't help you much when a tank was flying at your face. Despite my relatively small size, I was considered one of the more terrifying officers to new recruits. I had to admit my facial scars could be considered intimidating, but apparently it was my eyes that got to them. I had eyes as cold and as dark as the Sith they said. Well I suppose that's what war did. When I was young I was full of life and was considered very attractive by many. After all the fighting, the scars and death though, the war had turned me into a monster.

I was currently commissioned on a medium class Star Destroyer. Like most Imperial ships it was deadly and efficient. However, it was also looked very stark, bleak and just overall miserable. The Empire prided itself on efficiency and not on comfort and home decor. The walls, the floors, the ceilings and even our uniforms were black, white or grey. It was as if you were constantly watching a black and white movie. The worst was the ventilation. It always seemed to make a thudding sound in a sinister musical tone. It was as if some villain was about to make his grand entrance. It was particularly loud today. All the officers were lined up to greet one of them. One of the Sith had decided to accompany us on our patrol of a particular moon. It didn't make much sense as we had hadn't encountered a Jedi in weeks, and it was incredibly unlikely that we would find them on this insignificant moon. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised though, the Sith often did things that didn't make sense.

After the proceedings were over I was introduced to my squad. Many of them seemed to look a little nervous; apparently they must have heard the rumors about me. There were 24 of them and yet again the Empire had not deemed it necessary to inform who was actually from the Death Troopers and who was just from basic infantry. From the looks of them though, I had serious doubts that any of them were Death Troopers. I certainly hoped we didn't run into any Jedi today, otherwise we would be in serious trouble. If they were scared of me, how could they ever possibly dream of facing a Jedi? Well I guess it's time to get this over and done with.

"Good morning men, I am 1st officer David Baramore and if you want to survive you will do exactly as I say. First things first, as I'm sure you are all aware we will be having a Sith join us today. Now I don't know how much experience each of you have with Sith, but let me put down some ground rules for you. Only speak when spoken to and keep your responses short. Do not ask any questions even if they are relevant to the mission, instead ask a superior. Most importantly, if you value your life, stay out of their way." I said sternly. During this time the Sith was walking past us and I noticed some of the soldiers' eyes began to glance over.

"Oh, and for God's sake don't stare at them!" I growled. The soldiers' eyes immediately snapped back towards me.

"Now I don't expect any action on this miserable moon but just in case there are a few things you should know. Remember your training and don't try to be a fucking hero. Charging at the enemy doesn't show courage, it just means you're an idiot. Stay low, move fast and time your shots carefully and maybe if you're lucky you will survive." I honestly didn't expect they would though. I split the squad into two groups called alpha and beta. I kept two of the smaller men from the squad out of each group to be a part of my own personal unit. This was a common practice for me and the other officers thought I was mad because of it. Most officers chose large intimidating men to protect them. However, I wanted to move fast on the battlefield and I found that large men were often slow and dumb. While small men were often just as dumb at least they could somewhat keep up with me.

The moon was cold and miserable. Each of the officers had their own men spread out across the moon. The idea was that each squad would be far enough apart that a large area could be covered, but they would be close enough together that if the enemy was discovered it wouldn't take long for all the squads could converge onto each other. It was a solid plan, unfortunately this moon used to be mined extensively. That meant there were tunnels everywhere, so even if there was a Jedi hiding on this moon, it would be next to impossible to find them. If we were to find any Jedi it would be by sheer luck.

Apparently it was going to be my lucky day. One of the squads effectively bumped into two Jedi. They were both human species, one was a young girl about 13 years old. The other was an older man, probably 40, though it was hard to tell a Jedi's age as they aged differently than regular beings. It was likely that they were a master and an apprentice as that was common practice among both the Sith and the Jedi. The officer that led the squad that first encountered the Jedi was newly promoted and wanted to prove himself on the battlefield. Instead of waiting for the other squads to converge he ordered his men to immediately charge at the Jedi. I find that biggest weakness on the battle field is ego as after only 5 minutes his entire squad had been destroyed. Eventually the rest of the other squads converged to where the original squad was. These Jedi were strong, very strong. The next few squads that charged at them got wreaked nearly as fast as the original squad did. Most of them didn't even die by the Jedi's hand, but rather by their own laser fire reflected back at them. It was during this time I was holding my men back. I found that in battle it was best to let the overzealous officers go in first. They provided a nice distraction so that something constructive could actually be done. Things had gone completely to hell now, which meant it was time to move.

"Alright men you know the drill. Alpha team flank left and Beta team flank right. Move fast, keep low and in cover and for God's sake move when you shoot! I will not have you die by your own bloody laser fire!" I yelled through the radio. I just hoped they listened. It would be my turn now. I learned that the two men I had chosen names were James and Steve. I hoped they were fast; they would need to be for this to work. Fighting powerful Jedi was next to impossible, but over the years I had found a way. First came the distraction, this allowed other men to flank them so that they were surrounded in all directions, and then came the hard part, infiltration. It may seem tempting when fighting Jedi to fire as much as possible. The more shots coming towards them the harder it is for them to block them all right? While this may be the case, it not only gives away your position, but most of those shots you fired are coming right back at your face. However, if you could manage to get close without being noticed and time your shots careful, you could hit them. It wasn't perfect, but it was the best I could come up with.

"OK, Steve, James, it's important that you stay as close to me as possible and do not shoot until I signal you to. Now move!" I told them. I timed my movements and raced to the first form cover. Steve was right behind me, I was actually slightly surprised how closely he had kept up with me. James on the other hand had not. The explosions, laser fire and men constantly falling to the ground had affected him strongly, because he was frozen in place. I kept yelling at him to move but it was to no avail. It wasn't long till like so many of the others, he had fallen to the ground. I moved on, racing from cover to cover. It was during this time I noticed the Sith fighting the two Jedi. It was kind of pathetic to watch really. While it was two versus one, the Sith had ridiculously high amounts of support fire, yet the Sith was still being easily outmaneuvered by the two Jedi and had nearly lost his/her head multiple times. Still, I had to admit the Sith did provide I nice distraction. After much careful hoping from cover to cover I had gotten into position. I signaled Steve and readied my shot. I hit him! I had hit him twice in the leg. Granted I was aiming for his chest, but I still hit him and now it was time to finish him off. However, before I could take another shot both the Jedi had escaped down a tunnel and using the Force had collapsed the entrance.

"How long until it can be cleared?" I asked one of the demolition experts.

"20 minutes sir." He replied.

"Make it 10." Now that the fighting had stopped it was easier to see just how much damage had been done. It turns out I was right about the men in my squad. Half of them were now dead. My squad had fared better than most though. Most of the squads had been nearly destroyed. The Sith also appeared exhausted, though he/she tried to hide it as much as possible. It was 15 minutes before the rubble was cleared and once it was cleared the Sith, Steve and I raced through.

The tunnel was dark and narrow and we must have been moving fast, because we could not even hear the other soldiers following behind us. The battle must have finally taken its toll on the two Jedi, because they were moving much slower now than previously. We were catching up. The Sith was the first to confront them. The Sith slashed the light saber over his/her head down onto the master Jedi, but the Jedi parried this and sliced the Sith in half. The body must have fallen into darkness, because it was nowhere to be seen. The light saber was just sitting there though. The punishment for using a Jedi's weapon was quite severe. Who knows what would happen if you used a Sith's weapon. It seemed to call to me though. It was if I were meant to have it. So without thinking I snatched it up and continued the chase. When I was close enough I fired my gun at the master, he blocked it and I just barely dodged the reflected blast. Then in a mad frenzy I turned on the light saber and slashed at him. I slashed again and again and again until his light saber finally gave way and I sliced through his entire body. His apprentice then came at me for revenge. She had nearly sliced off my head, when Steve knocked her out cold.

"What should I do with this one sir?" asked Steve.

"Kill her!" I growled. I then quickly realized what I had just said.

"No wait, let her live." Then out of nowhere the Sith appeared. I could have sworn I saw her die. Her clock was off so I could finally tell it was a woman.

"I was just keeping it for safe keeping." I stuttered. She, as it turns out, growled at me and snatched back the light saber and stormed off. Well, that went better than expected. I had done it though, I had actually done it. It may have taken a lot of support, but I had finally done it. I killed a Jedi. I had finally beaten one of them.


	3. A relaxing day off work

Chapter 3: A relaxing day off work.

Killing a Jedi earned you a lot of respect in the army. Soldiers who were under your command had to give you respect, but it was nice when you could tell it wasn't forced. Capturing a Jedi also gained you respect in the army, though not nearly as much. Still, Steve was highly regarded amongst the men. I had rarely every taken notice of the men in my squads, but Steve showed competence and I respected competence. Steve was only 5'6, which was small for a Storm Trooper. This left little room for scars, which incidentally he did not have. Despite being 25 and having nearly as much battle experience as I had, there was barely a scratch on him. Either he was ridiculously lucky or was just very good at hiding any small scars he may have. I suspected the latter as Steve was incredibly well groomed. This was particularly impressive as due to strict dress codes all soldiers were supposed to look the same. Steve, however, somehow made his brown hair and blue eyes stand out. Most soldiers smelt terrible due to the suits we wore all the time; however Steve somehow seemed to smell like...well frankly he smelled like a field of flowers. Overall he looked like one of the 'pretty boys', who were the sons' of influential politicians. I hated those pompous bastards. I didn't care what Steve looked like though, he was competent and that's all that mattered to me. I quickly requested that Steve be permanently assigned to me.

Considering I had just killed a Jedi I had a lot of pull and my request was granted almost immediately. Granted, I suspect that they were already planning on doing this anyway. Despite us looking like complete opposites, it was apparent that we worked well together. We didn't just look like opposites though, we were opposites. It may already seem obvious, but I'm not one for protocol and 'proper' forms of communication. Steve seemed to be obsessed with it though and to this day is the only person I know to know the 105 ways to refer to a superior officer. Maybe it was because he read so bloody much. I swear he had read every entry in the Empire data base and then some. I understand that knowledge is important, but after a point it gets ridiculous. Despite all this though, he was apparently incredibly charming. I didn't see it, but then again people often told me that the idea of charm was completely lost on me. Looking like a 'pretty boy' meant you didn't last long in the army, but Steve seemed to make friends no matter where he was. He was also very popular with the ladies before joining the army and repeatedly got letters from his 'fan club'. Perhaps his charm worked on me as well, because I actually liked Steve. It would be the second time that I would truly care about a soldier. Could I trust him though?

After fighting the Jedi I had done something I should not have. Keeping a Jedi's light saber was a severe offense, but I simply could not resist. It had felt too good in my hands that day. My success that day had granted me to better equipment and my own private room to train in. When I was positive there were no security cameras in the room I took the light saber out of its hiding place. It had a long black handle with carvings along the groove. The carvings were hardly practical, but I had to admire its beauty. I turned it on. It was a blue laser and felt heavier than expected. However, when I swung the blade it felt natural. I discovered that I could hide the light saber in an oxygen tank cylinder and could pop it out on a moment's notice. I practiced popping out the light saber and my pistol at the same time. At first it went horribly and I nearly cut off my hand multiple times. I eventually mastered it though and I had to admit I looked pretty damn cool. I then went to watching videos of Jedi fighting in hopes of simulating their fighting style. It took a while, but I was making progress. After a while I could confidently say that out of all the soldiers in the Empire, I was the best at using a light saber. It wasn't much of an achievement, but it didn't seem fair to compare myself to Jedi. Things were going well, and then the Captain called.

Not much was known about the Captain, well at least by his subordinates. It was rumored that he was more influential in the Empire then his position let on, but it was all here say. He did not talk to officers of my rank on a regular basis though. Something was up. I went into his office expecting the worst. Nothing could prepare me for the conversation I was about to have.

"I wanted to personally commend you on your success during your last mission." said the Captain.

"I was just performing my duty for the glory of the Empire sir." I replied appropriately.

"The Sith will be taking the captured Jedi today for interrogation. Do you think she will provide any useful information?" Things were getting strange now, just where the Caption was going with this.

"Considering she is only 13 it is doubtful she will provide any useful Intel on the enemy Sir."

"Yes, yes you are quite right of course, a shame really. Tell me officer what do you think of the Sith?" Was this a test? Had my true feelings for the Sith been discovered? Was this the end for me?

"I think they are very important beings in the Empire." It was the most neutral statement I could think of.

"You know officer has anyone ever told you that you would make a great politician. Let me ask this again, what do you think of the Siths' methods?" Would nothing please this man?

"Their methods can be difficult to understand sir." It seemed that pleased him. He began to speak softly at first.

"Yes, that's a lovely answer... in which you have told me absolutely nothing! Now I will only ask you this one more time. What do you think of the Siths' methods?" He began to grow impatient. It was clear he wasn't looking for the regular Empire physiologist's crap. There would be no bullshitting my way out of this one. I would have to take a gamble. So I did what I had not done in so many years. I told someone my honest opinion.

"I think the Sith methods can be...questionable sir." I barely whispered the last part. I then detected a slight smile come from the Captain's face.

"I think you will be quite useful to me in the future. Oh and congratulations are in order you're being promoted to lieutenant. By the way should I die for any reason you will be promptly executed, just something to keep in mind. That will be all Lieutenant." I quickly left the room, and to think I was worried about getting caught with a light saber. That was the least of my problems.


	4. A peaceful stroll in the woods

Chapter 4: A peaceful stroll in the woods

The power gap between a 1st officer and a lieutenant was extremely high and to be frank it was a little overwhelming. I went from commanding a small squad, to being in charge of over 100 men and being consulted with about battle tactics and troop movements. Normally when a lieutenant is newly promoted a captain will show him the ropes. Or at the very least a captain will give a quick overview of what the job entails. However, the Captain was nowhere to be seen and over 100 men were staring at me. We were not currently on a mission, but we were all gathered here on the extremely unlikely chance that the republic had infiltrated the spaceship. I looked at the men, as many as I could see anyway. With over 100 men it was extremely unlikely that they all had Death Trooper training, but with so many men it was impossible to tell. There were just too many eyes to look at. It comforted me that Steve was beside me; at least I knew for sure one competent person was with me. Well I suppose I will just do things the way I normally do.

"Good morning men I am Lieutenant David Baramore and if you want to survive you will do exactly as I say. Here are my rules for the battle field. Stay low, move fast and most importantly for God's sake don't try to be a fucking hero! I know everyone here wants to prove themselves like Steve here. However, Steve did not capture a Jedi by charging into the battlefield like some idiot. He used his brain and followed orders." I said sternly. I then quickly whispered to Steve.

"Don't let what I said go to your head Steve".

"Of course not sir" replied Steve. I was about to leave when Steve began to pace himself across the room like some motivational speaker.

"What the Lieutenant means to say is that if we are to be successful we must act as a team." Steve quickly interjected. Steve continued to speak for quite some time after that. Men always paid close attention to me, but it was always out of fear and respect. It was different with Steve. It seemed that the men hung onto every word that Steve said. I suspected that he could get these men to even fight 1000 Jedi without hesitation. After Steve was finally finished with his speech of his, I dismissed the men.

"Well that was inspiring" I sneered at him.

"Just clarifying your words sir" retorted Steve. I smiled at him. I appreciated someone with a bit of backbone. Could I trust him though? That's what I kept asking myself. I decided to take a risk.

"Our job is to help the Empire in the war effort in any way possible, correct Steve?

"Yes, of course sir."

"So if we had a weapon that could help the Empire we should use it, no?"

"Yes... sir" Steve paused for a bit. I suspected he wondered where I was going with all of this. It amused me that he must be going through the exact same feelings I did when speaking to the Captain.

"What if the weapon was frowned upon the Empire? Should we still use it if we knew it would help the Empire's cause?" Steve's mind appeared to be racing. He stared at me, trying to gauge my face, but I remained perfectly calm. If I were truly to trust him, this decision had to be his own. After some time Steve finally began to speak.

"If it helps the Empire, then yes, I believe we should use it." I smiled. I didn't know for sure, but it was possible that I could trust him.

"Well it's too bad we don't have such a weapon." Steve began to look at me suspiciously. It was obvious that he didn't believe me. However, he was smart enough to know not to accuse me right then and there.

"Yes, it is a shame sir." It was clear that Steve was growing uncomfortable and I decided to let him calm down.

"I want you to mingle with the men Steve. Get to know them a little."

"Oh course sir." Steve left quickly and joined the rest of them. Within 5 minutes I heard roars of laughter. Well that was Steve, always the charmer. I was then paged to the control room.

The room was full of lieutenants from different branches of the army. There were 3 lieutenants from basic infantry, due to its massive size. These lieutenants were particularly large. Officers from basic infantry tended to be looked down upon, because they got the rejects. They also couldn't season their soldiers properly, because their soldiers were constantly getting traded between branches. This meant that they tended to over compensate. The hilarious thing was though is that these lieutenants actually had the most power due to the sheer size of the basic infantry. Lieutenants in basic infantry tried to convey this to other lieutenants, but were scoffed at. However, I knew that the true power in the empire was its basic infantry.

One of the lieutenants from the intelligence branch finally spoke up.

"We have just received word that two Jedi on a construction planet have incited a rebellion and security has been breached. We are to restore order to the planet and capture the two Jedi who incited the rebellion." Construction planet was a glorified term for slave planet. Unlike the Republic who kept their war prisoners in prison, the Empire worked their war prisoners on slave planets. Slave planets didn't just contain war criminals though. Each time the Empire took control over a planet the humans were incorporated into the Empire, anyone who wasn't human was taken to a slave camp to be worked for the rest of their lives. The Empire had little tolerance for aliens. I always found this strange considering that the Empire ancestors were not human and some Sith were still pure blood red skins. Nevertheless these slave planets were the primary source of supplies for the Empire and so it was imperative that control be regained.

"Do we know how strong these two Jedi are?" I asked. The intelligence lieutenant actually seemed sad.

"We don't even know what species they are." He said remorsefully. A battle strategy for retaking the planet was formulated and I was tasked in recovering the two Jedi as well as providing as much assistance in retaking the planet. We were to take back the planet at night and last Intel report indicated that the Jedi were last seen in a forest near one of the labor camps. I went to meet with Steve.

"Steve, out of the men here are there any good at stealth?" I asked.

"There are a couple people who would be adequate sir" he replied.

"I will require three men Steve."

"I suppose there is another who will do sir." Steve seemed reluctant. I took this into consideration. It may seem mad to try to capture a Jedi with only 5 men, but a large group would scare the Jedi off. I was going to use a diamond formation to track the Jedi. After requesting Steve to be permanently commissioned to me I received his full record. During stealth training I received a relatively high score. Steve, however, had obtained nearly a perfect score. Steve would be at the tip scouting our way ahead. I would be in the middle since I was the best shot and frankly the most important person there. Two men would cover our flanks and one would cover our rear. It was a small unit, but a silent and deadly one as well.

We immediately set down onto the planet and headed toward the forest, while the rest of my men helped with retaking the planet. With all laser fire, explosions and rain our presence was very well masked. The forest was thick and provided lots of cover. We were caring laser assault rifles with silencers and wore scout armor. Scout armor provided less protection, but allowed for faster and more silent movement. Despite carrying laser assault rifles we had yet to fire a single blast. By using sign language and flanking tactics we had taken down multiple groups of rebels with ease. To be fair, we had it easy. Each group we encountered were sitting by a fire and were talking to each other. To give them credit they were whispering, but in all honestly they might as well have shouted. It was clear they had next to no military experience and to top it off they were starving.

We continued scouting through the trees. Then Steve signaled to me to stop. There was somebody up ahead. Normally we would just flank them and take them out silently, but this was different. There was no fire, no noise and it was just one guy. It must be one of them. All my battle instincts told me to try to flank him and take him out silently. However, he might very well hear us if we moved. I had to make a decision, I signaled the men to fire. At the very last second the Jedi dodged the shots and took off. I raced after him. We were moving fast and it wasn't long before Steve and I could no longer hear the rest of our men behind us. The trees whom were our allies beforehand were now our enemies. As the Jedi raced through the forest he sliced down trees upon us. Not only did he have a head start, but now we had to dodge falling trees. I signaled Steve to flank left in hopes he could find an open shot. I had to find some way to slow him down. I noticed a large hill ahead and it gave me an idea. I signaled for a missile strike. The explosion caused an avalanche to roll down the hill and not even a Jedi could dodge that many trees and rocks. I finally caught up to him. I shot him multiple times in the arms and legs to bring him down. It then occurred to me that he might attempt to commit suicide. I jumped onto him to hold him down. In retrospect this was a very stupid thing to do. He had nearly sliced off my head when Steve had stunned him. The electric shock went partially through me and was extremely painful.

"Thanks Steve." I grumbled. I took a look at the Jedi. He had green skin and tentacle like hair. He also looked incredibly malnourished. It was likely he hadn't eaten in weeks. It was his light saber that interested me though. It had similar groves along its handle, but had a green blade instead of blue. I decided to do a bit of an experiment. I had brought along a modified gas cylinder to hide a light saber if I found one. I pretended to drop it.

"Would you mind picking that up for me Steve?" I motioned Steve toward the gas cylinder. Steve picked up the gas cylinder and began to examine it. His eyebrows rose ever so slightly. He looked at the light saber and then back to me. He then picked up the light saber and hid it in the gas cylinder. He then tossed a grenade.

"Shall we call command sir?"

"Yes, I believe we have accomplished everything we set out to do today". In about 10 minutes the rest of our unit arrived as well as a bunch of other soldiers from the other branches. I explained that the light saber was destroyed in an explosion, no one seemed to care. Order to the planet had been established, one Jedi had been captured and the other was killed. Overall the mission had been a success.

After returning to the ship I was called to have a formal dinner. I hated these dinners. You had to wear an uncomfortable formal uniform and while the dinner was meant to congratulate you, superiors always found a way to make it seem like they were the ones who made the mission a success. I had to admit though; the food tasted a lot better than the crap you would normally get. You could actually sometimes taste real meat. When I opened the door to the dining hall I nearly had a heart attack. There sat the Captain and beside him were a communications officer and her. The Jedi I had helped capture on that miserable moon was just sitting right there. The Captain began to speak.

"I'm glad you could join us lieutenant, please, do take a seat."


	5. A pleasant conversation among friends

Chapter 5: A pleasant conversation among friends

It's amazing how much information you can take in when you are completely stunned and speechless. The Jedi was about the same height as Steve and had straight blond hair that went to her neck. Her face was oval shaped and her skin was dark but white. What were most noticeable though were her eyes. Her eyes were a deep blue and had a fierce intensity unlike any I had ever seen before. The communication's officer was very short and had a large nose. His brown hair had a bowl style hair cut and to top it off he wore large round glasses over his pale white face. People had stopped wearing glasses for thousands upon thousands of years, but I guess he was trying to make some fashion statement. All in all he looked like someone who was bullied constantly in school. However, looking into his green eyes and the way he smiled it was clear that it had been a long time since anyone had been able to hurt him. There was one word to describe the Captain, average. Everything about him seemed unremarkable. He had average height. His skin was white, but not too pale. He had an average physic and he wasn't particularly handsome or hideous. In fact it seemed like there was nothing unique about him, but I suppose that was the point. It was easy to remain secretive when you were lost in the crowd. It was all a mask though; the Captain wasn't average at all. In a single sentence he could be more charming than Steve had been his entire life to as terrifying as the most notorious Sith.

I looked around the room and noticed several video cameras. Were they all mad? The Captain began to speak.

"Ah yes lieutenant, very observant. Officer would you please tell the lieutenant what the Empire will see tonight". The officer was giddy with excitement and had a ridiculous grin on his face.

"You will both enjoy a lovely meal together. The Captain will say a few rude comments to the lieutenant and the lieutenant will say a few choice words back at the Captain. We have a lot of voice recordings of the lieutenant swearing on file. At the end you will both leave very drunk and very happy." The comms officer seemed far too pleased with himself.

"You see lieutenant there is absolutely nothing for you to worry about." the Captain said as he continued to motion me to sit down. I finally couldn't take it anymore. I slammed my fists down onto the table.

"There is nothing to worry about? By all rights I should kill all of you right now!" I yelled. The Captain shook his head.

"Oh come now, we both know that's not going to happen. Now would you please sit down and eat, it will make you feel a lot better." I finally gave in. I had to admit the food tasted great. It was the best I had ever had. The meat even tasted like some of it was real. It helped me relax, if only a little. The Captain looked toward the Jedi and began to speak again.

"Now my dear I'm sure you are thinking very hard about how to save the Jedi that was just captured, but I'm afraid it's just not possible. He is currently being tortured by the Sith as we speak and is far too weak to attempt any sort of escape." She glared at him.

"He will be remembered then for his sacrifice after the Republic sends you all back to hell!" she snarled. The Captain shook his head.

"No, no, I'm afraid you are sorely mistaken. You see wars are won before the fighting even begins. The Empire has better weaponry, better ships and better soldiers and the Republic has clearly shown it is not willing to throw numbers at us. The Empire is simply ready for this war, while the Republic is not."

"The Republic is a symbol of peace and unity and isn't about to be destroyed by the likes of the Empire."

"I hate to break it to you, but the Republic has been destroying itself long before we showed up. Why do you think we started the war when we did? This war has been carefully planned and orchestrated for generations." She looked solemn; it was as if she finally understood. It was short-lived though as she grew fierce once again.

"I will admit the Republic is not perfect, but the soldiers of the Republic and the Jedi will never stop fighting you. We will fight back harder and harder until we have won, because we believe in the Republic. We believe in a free galaxy and we will fight for it!" I shook my head. Just how far had they brain washed her.

"You foolish stupid girl, do you know why the Jedi order only trains Jedi if they are young? It is because they want to fill your head with crap like this. War is not about winning or losing, war is about survival. Soldiers that fight for honor and what they believe is right fight bravely, but they die quickly. You talk as if the Empire is evil, while the Republic is good, but let me ask you something? Can you honestly tell me that the Republic or better yet the Jedi haven't tortured Empire soldiers? Might I add that these soldiers were forced to fight in this war? That is what is wrong with you Jedi. You make yourself out to be the moral guardians of the galaxy just because you were born with more power than everyone else." I was about to continue when the Captain interrupted me.

"I believe I have underestimated you lieutenant. You truly have more insight into this war than the common soldier. How much of it is correct is up to debate, but it's noteworthy at the very least. You are right about one thing though. The Jedi and the Sith are indeed powerful. They are more powerful than any number of solders in the galaxy." I raised my eyebrow at the Captain. I had just captured a solider with only two soldiers.

"Oh please lieutenant. That Jedi was starving and in no condition to fight and despite all of that he still nearly killed you." the Captain said in a condescending tone. "It won't be Sith who wins this war though, it will be imperial troops that will lead the Empire to victory. You see the Siths' power games with each other and general stupidly hold the Empire back from making progress. So not only will the Empire win this war without the Sith, we will win in spite of them. Let me ask you a question lieutenant, what do you believe is the weakness of the Sith and the Jedi?"

"It is their undying arrogance sir. They believe that just because they wield a light saber it makes them a god and their cockiness leads to their undoing." I sneered.

"While I will admit they are both arrogant, especially the Sith, that wasn't exactly the answer I was looking for. Well ask a soldier, get a soldier's answer. How about you officer, what do you think?"

"Both the Sith and the Jedi have a very inefficient form of training. Having a just a single master train one apprentice is inefficient and can lead to all sorts of complications, if they used a..." The Captain cut the communications officer off.

"Yes, yes I believe we get the point officer. It's actually quite interesting the officer has been telling me about a new computer program they have been developing. It hopes to be able to determine your optimal profession from the minute you are born. However, that was not the answer I was looking for either. I suppose it's my fault, ask a communications officer... No the true weakness of the Jedi and the Sith is their inability to let go of their old ways. Let me give you an example. There are a group of farmers that are in risk of being raided. A Jedi comes to them and tells them not to worry. He tells them not to pick up arms, but to let him deal with it and so he does. The raiders run away and the Jedi goes off to mediate. The raiders come back though and since the farmers don't know how to defend themselves the Jedi is forced to return. It is an endless cycle. The Jedi's obsession with peace leads to an eternity of war. Sith believe that to become stronger they must defeat those who are stronger than themselves. This leads to constant internal fighting which makes them weaker as a whole. So to truly achieve peace in the galaxy there must be a significant reduction in the number of both Sith and Jedi." I couldn't believe what the Captain was saying. This was beyond treason, this was madness!

"I suppose that it will be you who leads this new Empire without Sith and Jedi. You're nothing more than power hungry".

"I believe you have misunderstood me lieutenant. I have no intention of becoming the new Emperor. I simply want what is best for the Empire. It doesn't matter what you think though. I don't care what you think or say about me. However, if you disobey my orders I will kill you. Now I believe it is time I told you your new mission. You will continue to hunt the Jedi, but now when the situation arrives you will take care of the Sith as well."

"Do you want me to stop capturing Jedi then?"

"It's entirely up to you. If you wish to be merciful then kill them. After all the torturing... well let's just say a captured Jedi is a dead Jedi. Here, I want you to take a look at this." It was a data pad. A Sith had authorized the Captain to form a group of 13 elite soldiers. The squad was assigned to hunt Jedi and 'other' groups that would harm the Empire and would remain top secret. In reality the Sith was planning on using us to eliminate his competition. It was almost too easy. The Captain effectively now had a squad with unlimited supplies that could eliminate Sith and was completely off the record. The soldiers weren't just elite, they were the best of the best and their training scores were far better than mine. Yet, I was supposed to lead them.

"Why me sir, if you had access to all of these soldiers?"

"I may seem like I am unappreciated of your skills, but I do recognize that you have proven yourself to be successful on the battlefield." I noticed that Steve wasn't on this list and I so desperately didn't want to go through all of this alone.

"I noticed that Steve is not on this list. I'm sure you are aware how competent on the battle field he is as well. May I request that he be on this list as well?"

"It can be arranged. Oh and you can keep the light saber by the way." I froze. How did he know? I was so careful; there was no way he could know. "I had trackers put in your armor for a long time now lieutenant".

"Trophy hunter" the Jedi said bitterly under her breath. The Captain apparently heard.

"No, I don't believe so. The lieutenant is a very practical man, my dear. You see a Sith would most certainly keep a Jedi's light saber as a trophy. The lieutenant however would use it to let's say, cut through a pipe. Not very glamorous use for a Jedi's weapon, but I'm sure a Jedi would do the same if he or she needed to. I do hope that you will someday believe me about what I say about the Republic and the Jedi. Though I suppose I can still find some Sith for you to kill if you don't. I believe that is everything lieutenant. I suggest you get some sleep. You have a lot to think about." I left to go back to my quarters. On the way Steve confronted me, apparently it didn't take long for him to be added to the list. Steve seemed just a bit annoyed.

"I didn't work this hard to be a soldier in a Sith's power game sir." he spat.

"We're not working for a Sith Steve." Perhaps I shouldn't have told him, but I had to tell someone and Steve was the only person I could trust. I told him everything. "You could refuse Steve. I won't stop you. The Captain may kill you though." I said solemnly.

"Not much of a choice is it then... Sir, this is madness!" Steve insisted.

"I know Steve, I know." After Steve calmed down we parted ways. It finally dawned on me that by not wanting to go through this all alone I had doomed Steve into performing treason. The only man I ever trusted, the only person I could truly call my friend and I had effectively sentenced him to death. I found the nearest source of alcohol I could find and I drank. I drank, I drank and I drank until I could drink no more.


	6. First day of a new job

Chapter 6: First day of a new job

I woke up the next morning with a horrendous hangover. I had just had the worst dream ever and then it dawned on me. It wasn't a dream, it was all real! Well, not all of it was real. The Emperor had not danced in front of me wearing a pink tutu, thank God for that. The hangover didn't last long. The Empire knew that to keep soldiers moral up they had to let them drink once in a while. However, they couldn't have drunk/hangover soldiers on the battlefield. Alcohol was designed to make you drunk fast and wear off fast. The Alcohol didn't taste very good because of this, but it was effective nevertheless. I headed toward my personal command terminal. It was almost baffling how much influence the Captain had. I could now requisition any sort of military equipment I desired without a moment's notice. Intelligence seemed to improve as well. I not only had access to my soldiers' military history, I could find out their entire life story if I wanted to. I decided to stick to the scout armor; I'll admit I'm obsessed with speed and it had proved effective. I also got a new pistol. It had duo electronic trigger and a relatively high firing capacity. I wasn't entirely sure how 'authorized' my light saber was so I continued to hide it in one of the oxygen cylinders on my suit. I had given the other light saber to Steve, but I wondered how much he had actually practised with it. I went to go meet with him.

Steve was a lot more relaxed this morning. In fact he almost seemed cheerful. I guess it would take more than just treason to down his spirits. Either that or he was just really good at faking it.

"Good morning Steve."

"Good morning sir." Steve smiled. It was still impossible to tell what he was thinking. Maybe that's why we got along so well. We were both good at hiding thoughts and emotions.

"My new position allows me to requisition just about anything. Anything I can get you Steve?" Steve answered far too quickly. It was as if he knew I was going to ask him this.

"Could I have some plutonium sir?" he was practically grinning at this point.

"You want plutonium! Do you want to blow us all up! What do you even want with plutonium?" I exclaimed.

"A small amount of plutonium could prove to be very useful sir." I sighed and rolled my eyes.

"Fine, you can have a small amount of plutonium" I emphasized the word small. "If you blow us up though, I swear I will haunt you for eternity".

"Oh course sir."

"It's time we met up with the other men in our squad." I headed toward the transport ship. The Captain had informed me of the mission earlier. Intelligence had discovered that a Jedi was having a secret meeting with a bunch of senators on a planet in the outer rim. Officially we were to eliminate the Jedi with the help of a young Sith apprentice. Unofficially, I was to take care of the Sith as well. When I arrived on the ship I took a good hard look at the 11 soldiers there. I had looked at all their records, but a military dossier could only tell you so much. They were competent, very competent. None of them showed any fear and they had the eyes of men with years of battle experience. It was nice to know that while I may be committing treason and could be caught at any moment, I finally had competent men under my command. During this time the Captain was informing the men of their new designation and their mission today via a display monitor on the ship. After the Captain finished one of the men spoke up.

"Excuse me sir, but I was under the impression that the best way to deal with a Jedi is to send a Sith." This was a very popular opinion in the Empire. Many felt that the Death Troopers took far too many casualties when confronting the Jedi and the specialized equipment was wasted on them. It seemed far simpler to just send a Sith.

"It is true that the Sith are effective in dealing with Jedi, however the Sith are not always available. This is why the Death Troopers were created. However the Death Troopers have proven to be inefficient in this matter. The Empire has decided to employ a new tactic and you gentlemen are just that. To put you at ease solider in this particular mission you will be accompanied by a Sith." After that the Captain ended the transition. I decided that I would address these men in a slightly different manner.

"Now that the Captain is finished, can anyone tell me what the most effective way to fight Jedi is?" No one spoke at first. I didn't blame them. Soldiers were told to follow orders and very rarely were they asked questions. I began to wonder how much they knew about me. Well, they would learn soon enough.

"High explosives sir, the right placed explosive..." I cut him off. The first person to speak was very short; he couldn't be more than 5'2. As he spoke he extenuated each word, especially when the word was 'explosive', if I didn't know any better I would say he was in love with the damn things.

"Yes, yes explosives can be very effective, but for an explosion to work you have to know where the target will be. Tell me how reliable is intelligence when it comes to Jedi?" The soldiers looked at each other understandingly. "Now does anyone else have any idea how to deal with Jedi?"

"By using a pulse sniper rifle with a spotter you could eliminate the Jedi." I noted that the soldier who said this had assassinated a particularly powerful senator not too long ago.

"Mm, yes very effective, you could eliminate the Jedi without being remotely close to that light saber of theirs. Tell me soldier why are we not all snipers then?" He sighed in realization.

"Because the Jedi can sense the incoming shot and dodge using their force powers."

"Correct, it is important to remember that Jedi are not like regular soldiers. Many men have died for forgetting that. Now does anyone else have an idea?"

"We could use orbital bombardment." said another.

"Bomb the entire planet to kill a single Jedi. Tell me soldier what happens when people see bombs falling from the sky?"

"They head underground sir" he replied reluctantly.

"Now does anyone else have any ideas, no, OK then" Steve raised his hand. "Yes, 4, do you have an idea?" We were all actually referred to as numbers, but I had only bothered to learn mine and Steve's number. I was number 1 and he was number 4. I had no idea if the numbers were based on ranking or were simply arbitrary. Steve smiled as he spoke.

"We should use all forms of military combat sir." This actually took be back a bit. My intention was to show that no single form of military combat would take down a Jedi and that the only way was through speed and sheer attrition. However, I had to admit Steve's answer made more sense.

"Number 4 is correct. You have all been gathered here from different backgrounds, because no single technique is effective at taking down Jedi. Rather it is a collusion of multiple techniques that will successfully take them down. There is also one other important thing when it comes to fighting the Jedi. If you want to survive you must be fast. It doesn't matter what background you have if a tank comes flying at your face..." I paused, waiting for an answer. The soldiers looked at each other once again. It seemed like they were getting the feel for what kind of man I was.

"You had better get the hell out of the way" they all replied in unison. I smiled. I could grow to like these men.

"Excellent, on a side note since this is a top secret specialized squad all weapons have been authorized by the Empire." This sent confusion among the men. Very rarely did weapons require any authorization if you had enough training.

After about an hour we had arrived on the planet. The planet was mostly filled with desert. Due to a lack of important resources the Republic had mostly abandoned it. This meant that it was incredibly easy to land in secret. We arrived in about the same time as the Sith's personal vessel. I did not like to admit it, but I feared the Sith. They were powerful and deadly. I did not fear this Sith though, he just pissed me off. He was short and lanky and couldn't be older than 18. He walked around as if he was all powerful, but if he weren't a Sith I swear I could push him to the ground with my pinky finger. I will enjoy killing him far more than any Jedi.

We moved stealthily to the entrance to the building where the meeting between the senators was going to happen. It was hardly necessary; we didn't run into a single patrol. The planet was clearly abandoned. The entrance was only covered by two republic soldiers. The Sith began levitating two large boulders above their heads. It was ridiculous. Not only was it taking forever, but the sound of the boulders falling could easily alert someone. I signaled one of the men to take them out with a silencer. They dropped to the ground like flies. The Sith snarled at me.

"I'm sorry my lord I thought you signaled me to eliminate them." I smirked. "Hey hacker can you get this door open." The security technician immediately headed towards the door. It seemed weird to call him a security technician since he broke security far more then fixed it.

"I thought you all were supposed to be designated by numbers" the Sith spat.

"Numbers, jobs, it's all the same my lord." The technician said as he tinkered with the security. After 5 minutes the door opened. The building was mostly empty, except for the odd Republic soldier whom was dispatched quickly. We came across another security door. This one was taking longer to open. The Sith grew impatient and sliced a hole into the door. Security immediately started to go off and a loud beeping sound kept ringing. We raced through the door giving up any idea of a surprise attack. We entered a large room to see the Jedi waiting for us. It was clear that he was ensuring the senators escape. Rather noble of him I suppose. This next part was important. We had to move fast so that the Jedi could not escape.

"Seal the room! Do not let him escape!" I yelled. The explosions made concrete rocks fall everywhere which in turn provided great cover. Jedi were deadly, because they could reflect you own laser blast right back at you. However, I had competent men now. Each time we fired extended blasts at the Jedi we would take cover to block the reflecting blasts. The Jedi was getting overwhelmed, I could feel it. He still was able jump around though, from cover to cover.

"He has too much cover! Seal the room further!" I screamed. In reality the extra explosions had provided more cover, but it didn't matter. The explosions had made the room even smaller and the Jedi was having difficulty finding enough room to dodge all the falling rocks. We finally had an opening and sent a massive volley of shots his way. Using the force he managed to block most of the blasts, but not all. The blasts that made it through sent him to the ground and a falling rock pinned his leg to the ground.

"Finally, I've got him!" the Sith gleamed. My radio pinged. It was the Captain.

"6.5 seconds, not bad lieutenant. Clearly your obsession with speed has proven effective. Continue with the next stage of the mission." By this time the Sith was about to kill the Jedi and claim the glory.

"You're mine now!" the Sith snarled.

"Watch out my lord he's going for his light saber!" The Sith hesitated and frantically looked for the light saber. I popped out my light saber and sliced his head in one clean swoop. The way his head rolled across the floor reminded me of my first promotion. It was funny how things had gone full circle. The Jedi and the soldiers were all dumbstruck. "Like I said before, all weapons are authorized by the Empire."

"Yes, but did we have orders to kill him sir?" one of the men finally asked.

"Of course, he was working with the enemy. Why do you think he tried to constantly make our presence known?" The men didn't look convinced, but they didn't question me further. I looked over to the Jedi. He still looked shocked. I couldn't blame him, this kind of thing simply did not happen. I hated the Jedi, but I didn't seem to hate this one. He fought well and was simply doing his job and I could respect that.

"I'm sorry, but if I want to survive I have to follow a mad man's orders." I whispered to him. He nodded in understanding. The will to survive was respected by all. I quickly sliced off his head. It was painless.

"Since all weapons are authorized by the Empire Sir, do you mind cutting us out of here?" It was Steve who spoke that time. We were originally in a large room, but after all the explosions it looked more like a broom closet.

It took awhile but eventually I cut out a hole for us to walk through. I had heard that this planet used an older type of fuel source and that this building had a nuclear reactor in the basement. I paged the Captain.

"Would you like me to get rid of the evidence sir?"

"Yes, I believe that would be best." After ending transition with the Captain I addressed the squad.

"Alright men I have just been informed that Republic reinforcements will be arriving soon. We are to blow up the building to aid in our retreat. Bomb lover I want you to set off the nuclear reactor, but only use the necessary amount of explosives needed. The short explosion's expert quickly hurried off with a massive grin on his face. The rest of us raced towards the transport ship. The demolitions expert only just barely managed to jump onto the transport ship before the entire building exploded into a large ball off red light.

"Just how much explosives did you use bomb lover!" I yelled as the ship shook violently from the explosion.

"Just enough sir." bomb lover replied gleefully. The shock waves from the massive explosion nearly sent us to the ground multiple times but the pilot managed to maintain control. We finally made it off the planet. Well I guess as first days go it could have been worse.


	7. A friendly visit to the neighbours

Chapter 7: A friendly visit to the neighbors

Things were surprisingly quiet after the mission on the desert planet. I suppose it takes time to plan and commit mass treason. I took my new found free time to train as much as I could. I ran on a treadmill for two hours every day and spent many hours in the virtual room for target practice. I also continued to train with the light saber from time to time. I would have preferred to train more with the light saber, but finding places with no video cameras was often difficult. Despite having so much down time, I was incredibly stressed. The constant thought of being arrested for treason was beginning to take its toll. I began to drink nearly every night. It was amazing how after awhile the foul tasting alcohol began to turn sweet. However, the time to relax was now over. The Empire had decided to make a large push into the outer rim. Multiple planets were to be invaded and to do so a large number of storm troopers would be needed. Hunting Jedi would have to wait, the Empire was conquering today.

Our elite squad was sent to help secure one of the planets, but upon arrival a missile came down upon us. We all got out of the blast in time, but the explosion caused us to be separated. While looking for the rest of my squad I ran into two Republic units. Since I was unlikely to encounter any Jedi I was wearing armor that was similar to the standard issue. It made you slower, but provided more protection. I carried a large laser assault rifle, which focused on accuracy over fire rate. I was far better equipped than these Republic soldiers, but I couldn't hope to take on all of them out in the open. I baited them into a nearby building and in there it was just like target practise.

Fighting Jedi was stressful and despite always outnumbering them, you always felt overwhelmed. It was funny, because despite being outnumbered 20 to 1 I was overwhelming them. I like to think it was because I was just that good of a soldier, but the truth of it was they were simply not very well trained. Most of them couldn't be older than 18 and it was clear they didn't have much battle experience. They should have been trying to flank me and cut me off from cover, but instead they stood still and fired wildly. The first grenade took 5 of them out. The resulting explosion caused the others to panic. They all ran in multiple directions. Despite them moving quicker now, they were actually easier to take out. Since they didn't move as a cohesive unit, separating lost them the advantage of numbers. Plucking them off one by one was remarkably easy. As one came around a corner I would grab him, use him as a human shield and take out two across the room. I knew in the back of my mind that I was destroying them with ease, because they were not properly trained. However with the adrenaline rushing ideas began floating around my head. I could take down Jedi and Sith, I could take on multiple foes at once, and I was powerful! There was only one of them left and he had dropped his gun in sheer fright.

"Do you know who I am?" I asked as he quivered on the floor.

"No." He sputtered out.

"I'm Force Slayer bitch!" I declared and then I blasted him in the face. I really hope I'm not going to regret that. My radio pinged. I was to be picked up and taken off the planet. I went to the rendezvous spot and found Steve standing there.

"I just took out a battalion of Republic soldiers Steve, how did you fare?" I smirked. Steve raised his eyebrow at me. I had learned Steve was not one to believe bull shit but it was still fun regardless.

"I fared quite well sir. The Republic soldiers proved to be of little challenge." Steve chimed.

"So where are the rest of the Squad?"

"They were picked up by another ship sir." After a short time our ship arrived. It was one of the new battle cruisers. Like a star destroyer, it was triangular shaped with a bridge column in the back. It was far smaller than a star destroyer, but had nearly as much firing power. Due to its small size it was very manoeuvrable, but was susceptible internal combustion. It was designed to be the bane of small republic ships and was very successful, so long as there were no critical damage to the laser banks that is.

Once we entered space it was clear why we were called back. The Republic had come with reinforcements. During this entire war the Republic has always been on the retreat. It was clear that they weren't willing to risk lives to hold ground, until now that is. The Republic had sent over hundred of capital ships, some of which rivalled the size of star destroyers. What was more remarkable was the sheer number of fighters there were. Space was supposed to dark, but with all the fighters from both the Empire and Republic space was light as can be. The laser canons and proton torpedoes had turned space into a giant lightshow. It was almost beautiful in a way. Until you realized that each time a ship exploded hundreds of people died. Our ship was particularly good at making fighter ships explode. It seemed every 3 minutes I would watch another one get blown up on the monitor screen. It didn't last. We were hit with an Ion canon and I was knocked to the ground unconscious.

When I finally came to everything was a mess. Warning sounds were blaring throughout the entire ship, electrical shortages were rampant and worst of all the ship was spinning out of control.

"Steve, what the hell just happened?!" I rattled. I was trying to shout, but was too dizzy.

"You're not going to like it sir. That last blast just took out the bridge." Steve sputtered out. It seemed like Steve was still recovering as well.

"You mean no one is piloting the ship! What's the good news?" I exclaimed. Steve paused for a minute.

"Well sir, we are not dead. Also it appears that we are in a secondary command station. It is possible we could pilot the ship from here." I crawled myself towards the control panel. None of it made any sense, but I figured with a bit of experimentation I could figure it out.

"You're not actually going to try to use that terminal are you sir?" Steve asked.

"Well it can't be that hard to figure out. I mean how much training do these pilots have anyway?"

"They have 8 years minimum and to be frank sir if you touch anything you will probably blow us all up!" Steve declared.

"Then what do you suggest we do!" I shot at him. As if on cue two fighters entered the docking bay. As the pilots entered the room I ordered them to regain control over the ship. They looked at me and headed toward the command terminals without even bothering to solute. I wanted desperately to beat some sense into them, but realized now was not the time.

"How much experience do you have piloting this type of vessel?" I asked them both.

"This is the first time we have ever piloted a ship of this design." they replied. Well this was just great. To give them credit though, despite never flying a ship like this before, they stabilized the ship relatively quickly.

"Is light speed available?"

"We are retreating sir?"

"Just answer the damn question!" I growled. I was growing intensely frustrated with these two.

"Light speed is..." the pilot was interrupted by another blast. "Light speed is no longer functioning sir".

"Great..., try to find a planet we can land on." We found a nearby planet that seemed suitable and began to make our decent. Unfortunately I had not accounted for planetary defenses. A large ion canon on the planet's surface was firing at us as we descended down.

"Fire all weapons, take that bloody thing out!" I exclaimed.

"The last shot from the cannon knocked out our weapons sir."

"Then eject the torpedoes and hope they explode on impact, do something!"

"I'm afraid we cannot do that as well, we would have otherwise". Luckily the planetary canon appeared to be malfunctioning, because it was unable to directly target us. Unfortunately the last blast clipped our engines and the ship began to spin again. We spiraled downward faster and faster towards the surface. It was only at the last second that the pilots regained control of the ship so as to activate thrusters. We still crashed, but we slowed down enough to not die on impact. At least now we were no longer in the space battle. I looked out of the wreckage to see a large Republic patrol unit with a massive tank heading our way. I wondered how much better off we actually were.


	8. Taking in the sites

Chapter 8: Taking in the sites

With electrical circuits running haywire and radiation leaking from every which direction all I wanted to do is get the hell of the ship, but I knew better. The crash had caused a massive dust cloud around the ship which at the time hid our presence. It would not last though and those Republic soldier's with their massive tank were coming closer and closer.

"So now that we are on the ground, can we get access to those missiles?" I spat bitterly to one of the pilots.

"Yes sir, but we won't be able to fire them." they replied in unison.

"We won't have to. I want you to set them to explode by an electronic signal."

"We are going to blow up the ship sir?" Steve asked mildly shocked.

"Yes Steve, we are going to blow up the ship. Do you have a problem with that?"

"Of course not sir" Steve said nonchalantly. After only five minutes we had the ship ready to explode and ran through the dust cloud in the opposite direction. After finding some cover that was far enough away from the ship we waited. We had to time the explosion carefully to take out the whole patrol; if any survived they may call for reinforcements. I was about to signal to detonate the charge when the ship exploded. The explosion was tightly condensed, but large enough to engulf the whole patrol unit. Nothing was left. What I didn't take into account was that the explosion could cause an EMP wave. A second after the explosion went off our suits went haywire. I ripped off my helmet, because of sheer frustration and pain.

"OK what the hell just happened? I didn't signal for you to detonate it yet!" I panted.

"We didn't do anything sir. One of the Republic soldiers must of accidentally triggered It." one of the pilots murmured. He was still recovering from the blast. Our weapons were no longer functioning and our armor was next to useless now. I took out my light saber and tested it. It took a while to turn on, but it still worked. The pilots stared at me silently for a while. I tried to convince them that I was authorized to use this weapon, but they didn't seem convinced. Not that they could do much about it. There wasn't exactly any other superior officers they could go to.

"Well Steve we haven't got all day, test to see if your light saber still works." I motioned to Steve impatiently. Steve didn't do anything. "Wait... you didn't bring it. Why did I bother giving it to you if you're not going to use it?" I exclaimed. Steve simply shrugged and didn't even try to defend himself.

"Well this is just fantastic, I'm the only one here with a weapon and we are on an enemy planet with no way to contact anyone from command. Do any of you know we can find a communications tower or something?" I grumbled. One of the pilots began to speak.

"There are bases not too far from here, five hours perhaps. Using the tunnels underground we could cut our time in half."

"Excellent we shall use the tunnels then."

"I should point out sir that the tunnels lead to the caves where Jedi craft their weapons. It is possible we might run into one of them."

"That won't be a problem." I expressed confidently. Again the two pilots did not seem convinced. Each of us went in opposite directions to look for a tunnel. Since our radios were no longer working we would walk for 30 minutes and then head back to our original location. After walking for a while it was clear why the tunnels would be much faster. Our ship had crashed on what appeared to be a rocky plain covered in gray rocks. However, not too far were large mountain ridges spanning vast distances. Once we all made it back it was determined that Steve found a tunnel that looked the most promising. Despite being the most promising, I wasn't very eager to head down it. The tunnel was dark and ridiculously narrow. Our armor scratched and pieces of it ripped off as we barely squeezed down the narrow tunnel. Despite being ridiculously uncomfortable, I was actually glad the tunnel was so narrow. This was because it was so steep that had it been a large tunnel we would have all fallen to our deaths. After an agonizing 15 minutes of pushing ourselves down we fell into a cave.

Whatever use our armor had left before was now utterly gone. Luckily the cave we landed in was wide and open. As a gazed around the cave I had to admire its beauty. There were glowing crystals of every color imaginable. I walked around and noticed small primitive tools, such as chisels scattered around the cave. This must be one of the locations where the Jedi crafted their weapons. I couldn't believe they actually made them by hand. I had heard rumors that they had, but I always assumed it was a joke. It seemed completely ridiculous, but the evidence was all here. The Captain was right, the Jedi really can't seem to let go of the past. I guess I shouldn't be surprised, the Jedi were really messed up in the head.

We continued down the cave until we some rocks begin to move. I immediately thought it was signs of a cave in and looked for somewhere with cover. However, the 'rocks' were not rocks at all. It appeared to be a giant moss/rock creature though it was difficult to tell and we were certainly not going to come closer to find out. Steve looked incredible agitated and I suspect if he had a functioning gun he would be firing like mad right now. I motioned to him silently to stand down. I had no desire to angry this...thing. We all stood silently for what felt like an eternity. Finally the...thing motioned with his ridiculously large 'hand' to move along. We walked as fast as we could until we were finally out of its sight.

After walking for quite some time we came across what appeared to be a manually operated elevator. The Jedi seemed to take this 'by hand' thing very seriously. I grabbed the robe and began pulling. It took a while but I eventually made it to the top, unfortunately for me there was a surprise waiting for me. At the top of the elevator was an entire squad of Republic soldiers. I make fun of Republic soldiers all the time and generally they deserve it. They were both inadequately trained and equipped. These soldiers were different. These soldiers were elite. Their training and equipment rivaled that of a special ops unit. Normally they wouldn't be a problem, because we often outnumbered them in battle. However now we most certainly did not.

"Get your hands up storm trooper" their squad leader sneered.

"Yes, yes of course, but can anyone tell me what that thing is back there?" I asked. I was genuinely curious.

"What have you done to the guardian?" the leader demanded.

"Nothing, don't get worried. Putting my hands up now..." I began to raise my hand and in one quick motion I took out my light saber and cut the rope holding the elevator up. The look on their faces was priceless. Even though I braced myself the landing hurt like hell. I couldn't spend time recovering though as climbing cables began to fly over the wall. As soon as I was able I raced for some cover.

"Alright, what can we use as weapons?" I asked. Steve and the pilots began to pick up rocks. "You have got to be kidding me." The Republic soldiers didn't take long to repel down the wall and the rocks were not proving effective in the slightest. The soldiers were about to advance on our position when all of a sudden the so called 'guardian' appeared. The guardian and the squad leader appeared to be arguing for quite some time. I say the word 'argue' very loosely. The squad leader was arguing while the guarding kept pointing his finger down. After a while the squad leader gave up and the men began to drop their weapons. The guardian then headed towards us and signaled for us to drop our rocks. I quickly hid my light saber so that it wouldn't notice it.

"Well it was nice meeting you all today. I think we will be taking our leave now" I smiled. Seconds after we clambered up the wall and raced down the tunnel. While I was incredible grateful of what just happened I did find it kind of ridiculous. The place where one of the most dangerous weapons is created is guarded by a creature who insists upon pacifism. The Jedi were so contradictory it wasn't even funny. After walking for another hour we made it out of the tunnel.


	9. Borrowing things from a friend

Chapter 9: Borrowing things from a friend

The outside wasn't very comforting. We didn't appear to be closer to any base or communications tower. In fact we had ended up in a place that seemed very similar to where our ship had crashed. As I looked to the sky I noticed multiple ships in the distance crashing down towards the planet. Both ships from the Republic and the Empire were falling from the sky, but the Republic ships were far more frequent. We were winning the battle. One of the Republic ships had fallen relatively near where we were standing. I decided we should investigate.

We silently approached the ship. It appeared to be a small battle cruiser; probably could efficiency hold 10 people at the max. There was a massive hole in the side of the ship, which was likely the cause of the crash. We snuck in slowly and carefully. The ship was engulfed in darkness, which was advantageous for us. If there were any survivors they would never see us coming. After fumbling in the dark for a while we made it to what appeared to be the cockpit. Most of the controls were malfunctioning, but they provided light so we could actually see what was around us. There were two pilots. The one on the right was long since deceased, but I could hear the one on the left barely breathing. He wouldn't last long though. He had a punctured lung and his leg was bleeding profusely. I quickly sealed his lung with some plastic and super glue and patched up his leg. He would survive, for now at least. I ordered the pilots to watch over him and tie him up for good measure.

Steve and I explored the rest of the ship. We eventually made it to the engine room. There were two Republic soldiers monitoring the command terminals. It seemed like they were trying to repair the ship. To me it was a hopeless cause, but then again I was no engineer. I motioned to Steve for a non-lethal take down. We crept up towards them and took them out simultaneously. At the last second the older one had sensed our presence; it was possible that he was a Force sensitive. A Force sensitive was neither a Jedi or Sith, but rather was a individual with a small connection with the force. We dragged their bodies back to the cockpit and tied them up as well.

While waiting for them to wake up I continued to explore the ship looking for weapons. Most of the ship proved fruitless, but eventually I found decent pistol in one of the overhanging compartments. The basic Republic pistol was terrible by all standards. To accommodate all types of aliens its trigger and handle was massive. It also tried to do everything, which meant it preformed badly in all areas. This pistol was a newer model though; the Republic eventually learned that to make effective weapons they had to be specialized. By the time I made back to the cockpit the prisoners were awake. It was time to find a way home.

The older soldier glared at me with such malice it was as if I had raped his mother. The younger soldier however looked terrified beyond belief. It was as if he had pissed his pants in fear, perhaps he had.

"So who is command here?" I asked the prisoners calmly. They motioned towards the half dead pilot. "Oh course the one person who could help me is almost dead. This is just great." I grumbled. So the older soldier was the one effectively in command. Well this should be easy. I leaned towards the younger soldier. He was just a kid, couldn't be more then 18. I was so close to him I could see the beads of sweat roll down his face.

"Now kid normally when a storm trooper captures a prisoner they torture him to find out everything he knows and then some. Let me tell you some of them can be incredible creative. Now I'm on a bit of a tight schedule so what do you think I'm going to do?" His eyes light up.

"You're going to let us go!" the kid exclaimed joyfully. I had to try very hard not to burst out laughing.

"Oh yes, I'm going to let you go and then I am going to walk straight up to the Emperor and tell him to stop this silly war." I smiled mockingly. "No I'm afraid that is not going to happen. I want to get off this miserable excuse of a planet and to do that I am going to need a radio of some kind. Now I could torture you, but it would save you a lot of pain if you just told me".

"We will never tell you anything storm trooper!" the older soldier spat. I shot him in the arm.

"I wasn't talking to you! Now kid what's it going to be?" I began to point the gun towards him. I found that the fear of pain was far worse than pain itself and it was clearly the case here. The kid looked frantically between me and his superior. Finally he gave in and told me the location of a radio. The older soldier glared at him profusely.

"Now I'm sure there is some kind of code to stop this thing from alerting every Republic patrol unit in the nearby area." I leaned in closer to the kid. He was sweating bullets now.

"Don't tell him anything!" the older soldier snarled. I shot him in the other arm.

"You really need to learn when to keep your mouth shut! Now I'm waiting kid." The kid didn't take long to blabber out the code. I went outside to radio the Captain.

"I'm I still considered valuable to you Captain" I sneered through the radio. The Captain paged almost immediately.

"That depends; do you still have all of your limbs?"

"Yes..."

"Then yes I believe you are still useful to me. How many people will I be expecting?" I looked back to the crashed ship.

"Potentially 5, that number is still under review." The Captain laughed.

"The pilot has just informed me that we will be arriving at your location in 10 minutes and 32 seconds. Go ahead and time up loose ends in the mean time." I knew what I should do, but then again I often didn't do what I was supposed to do. I headed back into the ship. I was not finished with this kid.

"Tell me kid. Why do you fight?" The kid looked to his superior, who was currently furious with him.

"To protect the Republic." The kid stuttered out.

"Now come on kid, we both know that isn't true. If you truly wanted to protect the Republic you wouldn't tell me where that radio was. So why do you fight?" The kid looked ashamed.

"I want to live."

"You fight to survive; there is no shame in that. It is our basic instinct to survive. I don't give a damn about the Republic or the Empire. I'm just like you, I fight to survive." The pilots looked to one another. What I was saying was heresy. "Now the Sith demand absolute servitude, yet I have no love for the Empire. Why I'm I still alive?" The kid thought for a moment and then his eyes lit up.

"Your alive, because you're a Sith in disguise!" the kid exclaimed. We all burst out laughing. Even the older prisoner was laughing. I eventually calmed myself down.

"No kid if I were a Sith you would be dead a long time ago. No, I am alive because I know what to say to please the Sith. Do you think you could learn what to say to please the Sith kid?" The kid nodded his head.

"Do you think you could train harder than you ever have before so to survive in combat?" the kid nodded his head.

"Now for the tough question kid, do you think you could renounce all your love for the Republic?"

"Yes!" the kid yelled. However, he answered far too quickly. He would try to escape the moment he had a chance. I shot him in the head. The older prisoner was completely stunned and speechless.

"Tell me soldier, are all the young soldiers in the Republic like this one?" The prisoner looked to kid who was now dead in the chair.

"No, the young men of the Republic are honorable and strong willed and are better men then you could ever be, you murderer!" the prisoner exclaimed proudly.

"Perhaps you're right, but let me ask you this. Who saved your Captain's life while you were trying to fix your ship? Also what would have happened to this kid had I not shown up? He would have died. One way or another he would die. I hate the Empire, but I am grateful for them teaching me how to survive in this messed up galaxy. You see had he been able to forgo the Republic I could have been able to save him. That is the difference between the Empire and the Republic. The Empire teaches you how to survive, while the Republic teaches you how to die."

"Go ahead and try to justify your actions storm trooper, you are still a murderer." The prisoner spat.

"This is war soldier, we are all murderers. Now I'm going to give you a choice, I can kill you or let you be captured by the Empire."

"Kill me storm trooper, I will never give the Empire anything."

"Very honorable of you soldier, should I kill your captain as well?" This was harder for the prisoner. He took some time to think.

"Let the captain be sent to one of your slave planets. When we inevitably drive the Empire out the galaxy he will be able to be reunited with his family."

"You believe he will survive interrogation?"

"Yes, the captain is very strong willed. He will survive." In one smooth circular motion I shot the prisoner and the two pilots behind me in the head.

"Steve, grab the living prisoner, were done here."

"Are we blowing up this ship as well sir?" Steve smirked.

"Is that supposed to be a joke Steve?" I snarled.

"No sir." After we left the ship with the prisoner it occurred to me that I had just openly stated to Steve that I hated the Empire.

"You're not going to kill me in my sleep are you Steve?" I asked quizzically. Steve smiled.

"Not today sir, I'm far too tired."


	10. A quiet trip home

Chapter 10: A quiet trip home

The transport ship arrived in 10 minutes and 5 seconds, only 3 seconds off the original rendezvous time. The pilot popped out the ship.

"I apologize for the delay. Now if you would please enter the ship so that we head off this...planet. Is this everyone I am picking up today, sir?" the pilot asked the Captain, who was currently sitting in the ship. The apparent loyalty of the pilot to the Captain was nearly unfathomable. He had nearly bowed when speaking and showed more respect than anyone ever did to a Sith, let alone a captain.

"No, I suspect the lieutenant has taken care of the rest. We will be taking our leave now." the Captain grinned. We took off the planet and landed in a small, but powerful battle cruiser. I was invited by the Captain to the bridge to see how the battle was going. I learned that the general who orchestrated this offence simulated a break in the Empire's line of ships. The Republic took the bait and charged all their ships through in hopes to flank the Empire's ships. What the Republic didn't know was the general had held two groups of ships back from the fight. One group plugged in the hole that the general simulated cutting off the Republic's means of escape. The other group came in from behind the Republic ships so as to flank them. With the Republic ships completely surrounded and no means of escape there was little hope for them.

I noticed that the Captain had diverted all power to weapons and none to shields.

"I didn't ask you to pick me up from that pathetic excuse of a planet just to die in a space battle sir." I sneered at the Captain. The Captain smirked.

"Look around you lieutenant, the Republic is on the run. We are perfectly safe. Now why don't you stick to what you're good at and leave the commanding to me." I immediately shut up. The Captain said he didn't care what I said as long as I followed orders, but I didn't want to push my luck. In any case, he was right. The Republic ships were desperately trying to retreat and were dropping like flies. I tried to keep my mind off of it.

"Someone thought I was a Sith today, sir." I smirked. The Captain laughed, but only for a short time. He was engrossed into the battle.

"Who thought you were a Sith lieutenant?"

"It was just a stupid kid from the Republic sir."

"A lot of stupid kids from the Republic will die today." The Captain said nonchalantly.

"I'm heading to the airlock. I need a quiet place to plan out my next military encounter." I didn't even try to sound convincing. I was far too tired to try to lie properly. The Captain could tell I was lying, but didn't care. I doubted that anything could distract the Captain from this battle. I went to the airlock and tried to sleep. It was then that everything crashed on me. The Captain was right. So many stupid kids from the Republic would die today for this stupid war. There was just so much death. I tried to save one of them, but I should have known better. If I couldn't save a stupid kid from the Empire, how could I possibly save one from the Republic? I tried to save him and instead I shot him in the face. Perhaps the other Republic soldier was right, maybe I am a murderer. Is a murderer supposed to feel this much guilt? During this whole war all I cared about was survival. Do what you have to survive and only care about yourself. If that was the case though, why did I keep trying to save people? The Empire taught you to feel no remorse to the enemy. The Empire also taught you love it unconditionally. I guess if the Empire failed to teach me the latter it shouldn't surprise me that I didn't learn the former. I eventually fell asleep, but the image of me shooting the kid appeared in my head again, again and again.


	11. A pleasant tour of a small ship

Chapter 11: A pleasant tour of a small ship

When I woke up the battle was over. What was left of the Republic fleet had retreated to the Core planets in the Republic and various Imperial ships left to seek repairs or help in the capture of the now undefended planets in the outer rim. We were heading to a Star Destroyer called the Devastator. It was commanded by the very general who led the assault on the outer rim.

The Devastator was very aptly named. Since its commission it had laid waste to hundreds of ships. Despite its age it was also one of the most technological ships in the fleet due to constant upgrades. However, what was most incredible about the Devastator was its general. The general was responsible for multiple victories in the past, but what was truly remarkable about the general was his defiance of the Sith. The general would constantly use logic to go against different Sith's 'recommended' orders. Normally this would get you killed, but due to the general's past record no one dared harm him.

As we docked into the Devastator I could not help but admire its sheer size. It was one of the largest ships in the fleet and every single inch had its purpose. It was Empire efficiency at its finest. I headed towards one of ship's many gunneries. Everyone there was busily working repairing and calibrating the ships guns and laser banks. I looked towards the laser banks, they were massive.

"I wonder if those laser banks could fire a laser blast large enough to blow up a planet." I muttered to myself. Apparently one of the engineers heard me.

"A space station the size of a small moon could theoretically do it sir." The engineer responded cheerfully.

"You have thought about this a lot haven't you?"

"I haven't in the slightest sir." He obviously did though.

"The general runs a tight ship doesn't he?"

"Oh yes, we took out 35 ships in the last battle. How many ships did you take down?" the engineer asked with a little bit of sass. I raised my eyebrow at him. The men on this ship were certainly confident.

"Oh I wouldn't know. I don't keep track of that sort of thing. I keep track of...other numbers." I smirked mysteriously. The engineer was mildly puzzled, but then quickly went back to work. The general certainly did run a tight ship. Everyone was hard at work, but everyone seemed to be cheerful and downright happy.

"I guess that what happens when you don't have a Sith looking over your shoulder." I muttered to myself.

"Careful lieutenant, someone might misunderstand you." The comms officer smirked behind me.

"I doubt the Sith would care if they made us happy or not officer." I retorted. The officer motioned me out of the gunnery to some where more private. We headed to docking bay; the noise from various engines was so loud we could barely hear each other.

"The Sith want absolute servitude lieutenant, it's best you remember that."

"Oh course, speaking of which how is the Captains pet?" The comms officer thought for a moment.

"Ah you mean her. She recognizes the faults of the Republic, but has yet to lose her loyalty to the Jedi order."

"I'm sure she will eventually. We are all pets to the Captain" I said solemnly.

"I wouldn't call us pets, but I see your point lieutenant. We follow his orders, because we all believe in him. Well soon to be all of us anyway."

"We show absolute servitude officer?" The officer glanced at me understanding what I was implying.

"We show absolute servitude to the right man lieutenant". I looked at the ships in the docking bay under repair. It reminded me of how devastating the Republic's recent defeat was.

"How much longer do you think this war will last officer?"

"If we were to attack the core planets it would end in the course of a year. That will not happen of course. The Captain was correct about what he said about the Sith. No, we will not attack the core planets and the Republic will rebuild their ships. We will win this war lieutenant, but it will take much longer than necessary." We were then paged to head to the intelligence room. Apparently a development in the Republic had occurred.


	12. Meeting new people

Chapter 12: Meeting new people

As we walked into the intelligence room I got to see the famous general for the first time. It was underwhelming to say the least. From all the devastation he had caused you would expect the general to appear grizzled and ruthless. In reality he was a very short man with a fairly high voice and soft facial features overall. In all honesty he looked more like a clerk for administration in government than a seasoned general. To top it off I had just learned that his official name was Marley Fay. Despite this the men around him gave him the utmost respect.

One of the intelligence officers came up to the general.

"We have just tapped into the Republic message sir" the officer said excitedly. The general simply nodded and the message was shown on the main screen. There were two male humans that appeared on the screen. One of them appeared to the new Supreme Chancellor. The Supreme Chancellor was the Republic's version of the Emperor, but of course with far less power. I say new, because we were always told that the Supreme Chancellor was quite old, but this one appeared relatively young. I guess after the latest defeat the Republic finally demanded change. The other man appeared to be a 40 year old Jedi who seemed completely drained of energy. The Supreme Chancellor began to speak.

"Due to recent events it is clear that in order to defend the Republic we will have to renounce our policy of only voluntary participation in the army. We will now be overseeing conscription on multiple planets. Now let me assure you that this will only last until the Empire is defeated. I understand that there may be some opposition to this and not everyone drafted will be forced into combative roles. There are many non-combative positions in the army that need filling. There may be some resistance to this new policy so my associated here will be leading a group to ensure the new policy is enforced smoothly and safely. Let me be clear though, this is temporary and once the Empire has been driven out of the galaxy everything will return to normal." The Supreme Chancellor finished. The Supreme Chancellor seemed very calm and relaxed however if you listened carefully you could tell how stressed he was. There was obviously a lot of pressure on him.

The whole room appeared to be cheering. The men saw this as a sign of the Republic's desperation. The Republic initially insisted that they would win this war without mandatory enlistment. Everyone seemed to see this as confirmation of our inevitable victory. The general simply smiled.

"Sir, the Emperor is messaging us." said one of the communication officers. The officer looked to me. "I'm not sure everyone here is authorized though." I glared at him.

"I assure you I am authorized." I snarled at him.

"The lieutenant is correct." The general said softly. The officer was flustered with embarrassment and quickly went back to work. The comms officer was about to leave when the general spoke again. "You may stay as well officer."

The screen light up. I had never seen the Emperor before and again the experience seemed underwhelming. The Emperor appeared old and frail and his voice high pitched and raspy.

"Your plan was quite devastating to the Republic general." The Emperor rasped softly.

"Thank you sir." replied the general.

"Yes, thanks to your plan the Republic is finally taking this war seriously. They have begun enlisting the masses as we speak."

"Too little too late sir. Give me command of the entire fleet and within the year the Republic will be no more." the general boasted confidently.

"You wish to lead the Empire general; I think you may have forgotten who is in control here." The general grew slightly pale.

"I only wish to serve you..." The Emperor interrupted him.

"No, you wish to lead the Empire. I believe I have given you too much freedom general. I will be sending my apprentice to oversee your actions. That will be all general." The Emperor ended the transmission.

To give the general credit he appeared quite calm when he dismissed us from the room. I however was not. From what the Emperor had said the general could very well be killed soon and considering how the men here felt about the general there could be a lot of collateral damage. I raced to the docking bay to look for a fast easy to pilot ship. When I found one I familiarized myself with the controls. I also prepped a message explaining that I was on a top secret mission authorized by an unnamed Sith. Next I looked for the smallest gun I could hide in my uniform. Upon a Sith's arrival we were not authorized to carry weapons, but I needed some way to protect myself. I was prepared, or at least a prepared as I could be.

The Emperors apprentice arrived the next day. All the high ranking officers, including myself, were ordered to greet her. As luck would have it the ventilation was making that damn sinister song again. I wondered if it was just me who heard it. As the Sith emerged I had to force myself not to appear shocked. She was the ugliest thing I had seen in my entire life. She made the Emperor look downright beautiful. Her face looked as if it had been bashed in multiple times with a hammer. Her bodyguard was the complete opposite. She was the most beautiful thing in the galaxy, at least to me anyway. She had long luscious red hair and striking green eyes. Her oval white face was perfectly symmetrical as well as the rest of her body. She had a tall hourglass figure, but her arms and legs were fairly large due to extensive training. I always hated our bland uniforms, but she made it look like a work of art.

I will admit I never had much respect for women in the empire. It seemed that many of them flirted with high ranking officers and men in government so as to live a better lifestyle. I suppose I couldn't blame them though, the Empire was a heavily male dominated society. However, I respected women in the military above all else. For a woman to enter the military she had to be far more determined and qualified then any man. Women in the military were the ones who truly defied the Empire. They went against the statuesque. She was the most defiant of all. Excluding the Sith she was the highest ranking women in the Empire. She was a lieutenant commander and arguably one of the best soldiers in the galaxy. Her name was known throughout the whole Empire. She was Denali.

I realized after a while how much I was staring at her and worried that she might notice. However, it was clear that paying attention to no one. They walked a couple meters from the transport ship and suddenly the ship exploded. The blast knocked me out and I woke up in hospital wing with droids treating my wounds. I got up and looked for someone with answers. I eventually found someone.

"What happened?" I asked forcefully.

"The ship exploded." he replied with such a lisp that it made him nearly incomprehensible.

"I know that! I want the details."

"There was a bomb placed in the ion drive core."

"Clearly not a very good one since it went off too late." The man looked at me as if I were a complete imbecile.

"The bomb was one the finest ever made. It was completely undetectable, because it was incorporated into the engines themselves. The only reason it didn't go off in time is because of a minor malfunction in the ship." The man blabbed on about explosives and ion engines for quite some time after that. Most of it was incomprehensible due to that ridiculous voice of his. I went to another person for more help. I finally found an officer.

"Can you tell me what happened? That idiot over there keeps blabbing on about engines and explosives." The officer almost laughed at me.

"That 'idiot' over there is the chief investigator. He's actually an incredibly intelligent man, just nearly impossible to understand. I believe you're Lieutenant Baramore, your captain is under interrogation right now." I grew slightly pale. I didn't believe the Captain was responsible for this. It was far too brazen for him, however what if the Sith find out his other crimes. I raced towards the ship I picked out in the docking bay. To my surprise I found the comms officer already there.

"It took you long enough to get here lieutenant, by the way I changed your report to be far more realistic." The comms officer smiled.

"Well, what are we waiting for, we need to get out of here!" I sputtered. The comms officer shook his head and refereed to a device in his hand.

"You really should have more faith in the Captain, lieutenant. If this device turns red, then the Captain has revealed 'classified information' and we will quickly make our leave. However, if it turns green then nothing of importance will have been said and we will stay." The comms officer seemed very confident. We waited for an hour and then the device finally activated. It was green. I breathed a sigh of relief. The comms officer didn't seem surprised at all. I suppose I shouldn't have been either. The Captain was not to be underestimated.


	13. Training

Chapter 13: Training

It seems I have a tendency to over react to situations. When the Emperor's apprentice arrived I expected everything to go to hell and yet things seemed to be surprisingly calm. Granted her ship did explode upon arrival, which did bring up a lot of questions. Who was trying to kill her? The simple answer would be the Republic, but they simply did not have the resources to pull something like this off. The Captain may be able to, but it just didn't seem his style. Perhaps he suggested it to another Sith? No, if that were the case he would be far from here so as not to seem guilty. Well I suppose there was no point on dwelling on it; I had no way of finding out on my own. Besides, I had more pressing matters to deal with.

The Captain had given me some time off and I intended to put it to good use. I had practiced using my light saber for quite some time now, but I could only learn so much on my own. I informed Steve that I needed two poles covered in rubber and two low grade stun pistols. We were to meet at an inactive trash compactor. It was one of the few places without surveillance. I headed to the trash compactor and sure enough Steve was there with everything I had asked for.

"Now I'm sure you are wondering why I brought you here Steve..." Steve interrupted me.

"Is it because you are delusional and think you are a bloody Jedi sir." Steve sneered. I was shocked. I had never heard Steve speak this brazen. I didn't think it were possible. I looked into his eyes and realized that he had been drinking. As his superior I felt like I should reprimand him, but I had to admit I had put him through a lot lately. Plus the idea of a drunken Steve was amazing. I couldn't help but laugh.

"It's great to finally see you break out of your shell Steve. Now I trust you have been practicing with that light saber I gave you?" I grinned. Steve simply glared at me. "I will take that a yes. Now today I'm going to teach you a secret classified fighting technique known as Shendi."

"You are full of bullshit sir. Just because the book on classified techniques is 10,000 pages long doesn't mean no one has read it." I looked at him flabbergasted. I didn't even think such a book existed

"Alright I made it up. They don't exactly teach you this kind of thing in special ops training. As you may have already guessed Shendi involves using a light saber and a pistol. The light saber is used defensively while the pistol is used aggressively. The light saber is particularly useful against Force lightning. One thing to remember is that every time you fire your pistol it is important to move so that the potential reflected blast does not hit you. Now I'm well aware the unfortunate situation that we cannot take on most Jedi or Sith single handed, that where my battle strategy '3 eyes' comes in. Now '3 eyes' involves the use of four people..." Steve interrupted me again.

"It's called '3 eyes', but it involves 4 people..."

"Yes, now please let me finish. Two of the four people wield light sabers and pistols, while the other two carry assault rifles. One of light saber wielders confronts the Jedi or Sith directly. He is meant to gain as much of the Force wielder's attention as possible. The other light saber wielder in the mean time looks for an opening to strike, while at the same time directing the movements of the other two soldiers. The two soldiers are constantly moving in a circle, looking for openings to hit the Force wielder. The constant shots from the assault rifles makes the Force wielder focus his powers on defense rather than attack and the light saber wielders prevents the Sith or Jedi from taking the soldiers down individually. Do you have any questions?"

"You are completely insane sir... but this may actually work."

"I'm glad you think so, because we are going to be practicing this for 12 hours a day for 6 days."

"You are a jack ass sir."

"Great, now let's begin..." Suddenly something came out of my suit and began scanning the room. Then sure enough a hologram of the Captain popped up. "Do you mind? I'm kind of in the middle of something here." I was seriously getting tired of the Captain always watching me, it had gotten downright creepy.

"You have certainly gotten bold lieutenant; I am here to inform you that you have a new mission coming up in two weeks. You will be attending a wedding." The Captain smiled.

"A wedding sir, I'm not the groom am I?" The Captain smirked.

"No lieutenant, though the concept of you getting married is an entertaining thought. An up and coming Sith is looking to obtain more power and influence and is set to marry the daughter of a high ranking general. You are to eliminate all 6 Sith attending the wedding. The best part is that this is completely authorized by the Emperor himself."

"You want me to take down six Sith sir! You yourself said how weak I was compared to Force wielders! Are you trying to kill me!" I sputtered out.

"Relax lieutenant, you will have help and I believe in your capabilities. I will give you the details a week from now. Besides this should be easy for the 'Force Slayer'" the Captain mocked and then cut transmission. I should have known I would regret saying that.

"Are you seriously calling yourself the Force Slayer sir?" Steve mocked.

"Shut up! We've got training to do." I growled.

For the first day I decided to just practice defensive positions with the rubber poles rather than actually fighting to get Steve up to speed. It was apparent that while Steve had not trained as much as I had, he had practiced with the light saber. Steve was also a quick learner and it wasn't long till he was nearly as good as I was. The next day I decided we were ready to use the stun pistols. The pistols were low grade so could never stun us because of our armor; however they still hurt like hell. Each time one of us would simulate a Sith. While playing the 'Sith' role you just carried a rubber poll, but every time you raised your hands the other person would have to 'block' the simulated Force lightning. It was by no means a perfect system, but it wasn't like we had a Sith we could practice with. We would quickly learn to dread the 'Sith' role as the pistol grew more and more painful. As we moved faster and faster simulating Force lightning became more difficult as it was hard to instinctively block an attack that wasn't actually coming at you. It became clear that to truly master blocking Force lightning we would have to fight plenty of Sith. After three days of this I felt confident we had learned as much as we could. The last two days were spent just using the rubber poles. We clashed back and forth and we grew stronger and faster and more confident with each swing. Despite being just a random piece of metal covered with rubber I felt as if it were attached to my body. I began to understand why the Jedi took the time to engrave markings on their light sabers. To them a light saber wasn't just a weapon, but an extension of themselves. I still thought it was idiotic that they made them by hand, but I began to understand why. After six days of extensive training we had grown very proficient in our new skills. However, we were also exhausted and could barely move. Despite being covered in rubber, the poles left us with multiple bruises and the pistols only made things worse.

I clambered out of the trash compactor and saw the person I least expected to see. It was Denali, the lieutenant commander that was guarding the Emperor's apprentice. Her eyebrow was raised as high as it could go as both Steve and I popped out of the trash compactor.

"Do you often lie in trash with your subordinates, lieutenant?" she asked with a sly grin.

"I find it an excellent training ground. The threat of being crushed really keeps the blood pumping". I grinned back.

"Is that is what it takes to excite you then?"

"Well we don't all have such big guns to play with lieutenant commander."

"I suppose you're then going to tell me it's not the size that matters but how you use it?"

"Oh course, but you already knew that." The lieutenant commander smiled and shook her head. She then proceeded to throw something in the trash compactor and walked away. I looked over to Steve who was silent this whole time.

"I like her." Steve rolled his eyes and groaned. "Oh shut up Steve, besides I have seen the way you look at number 3." I actually didn't even know if Steve was gay, but the statement seemed to make him flustered nevertheless.

The next day I took a much needed rest and slept peacefully. Until the comms officer woke me up that is.

"Working hard I see lieutenant. I didn't know the Empire paid you to sleep in the middle of the day." The comms officer jabbed.

"What do you want?" I grumbled as forced my eyes to open slowly.

"The Captain wishes to speak with you. Steve is already there. We paged you over an hour ago." Well I suppose I shouldn't keep the Captain waiting. After the comms officer left put on my uniform and slowly walked out of my room. Outside the comms officer was waiting for me. Apparently he was going to escort me there. We walked in silence for quite some time. Along the way we walked past the Emperor's apprentice. I waited until she was long out of ear shot.

"The Emperor's apprentice is, well to be frank she is the ugliest thing I have ever seen, which is saying something considering one time someone made me watch a video of a Hut orgy." I whispered.

"The Emperor's apprentice is very powerful indeed." the comms officer replied.

"Well yes, I'm sure she is, but that wasn't my point."

"You didn't know? The uglier a Sith is the powerful they are."

"You have got to be kidding me."

"Not at all, it's a well proven fact. I can show you some graphs if you would like."

"No thank you, I think I got the message." We headed into a small room and sure enough Steve and the Captain were there waiting for us. I looked around the room and saw it had multiple concealed video cameras.

"Must we go through this process again lieutenant, the video cameras are well taken care of. Now to business, you and Steve will be serving drinks at the wedding reception. When you find it optimal you will eliminate every Sith attending. You will not be alone of course. There will be 60 soldiers to aid you in your task. I'll admit they are not the most qualified soldiers, as they are all low ranking soldiers from basic infantry. However, the sheer number of them and the fact that this is an ambush should make the task relatively simple. It should be noted that you will be wearing Republic armor as we will be framing this as a Republic attack. Now are there any questions?" The Captain asked.

"How much clearance do these soldiers have?" I asked. I spent all this time practicing to use a light saber only to realize now that I may not be able to use one.

"You can tell them nearly anything, they won't be around long to tell anyone. Now I believe that is everything. It is best you be off now, you have a lot of planning to do."

For the next week Steve planned for the most optimal locations for the soldiers to hide and plans of attack, while I continued to practice using the light saber. No matter how much we trained and planned though, I still felt like we weren't prepared. This was going to be anything, but simple.


	14. The Red Wedding

Chapter 14: The Red Wedding

Everything was set in motion. The ceremony went off without a hitch and no one was aware of the 60 soldiers hiding in the room where the reception was taking place. Yet despite all of this, I still felt nervous. The reception room was large so as to fit over 200 people. It was clear that our Sith target wanted this to be a big deal. The room was filled with large red banners and all the table cloths were red as well. Even the bride's dress was red. It seemed like the Sith had an unhealthy obsession with the color red. There was a large dance floor as well that was light up by a giant chandelier on the ceiling. I didn't think that Sith actually danced, perhaps it was the bride's idea. There were lots of expensive ancient artifacts placed around the room, which gave our men plenty of places to hide. Once again the Sith's arrogance would be their undoing.

Everyone appeared to be enjoying themselves and I felt it was time for the party to truly begin. I began to make my way to the happy couple. I was dressed as a waiter serving red wine. However, underneath my clothes I was wearing Republic armor and was armed with a pistol and my trusty light saber. The pistol was actually a completely new design. While Steve was planning the ambush he also worked with R&D to develop a specialized pistol. Unlike most pistols, this one acted more like a shot gun. It had a long recharge rate, 1.05 seconds to be exact, but made up for it in power. Each shot sent out 4 small yet powerful laser blasts that moved in an unpredictable fashion. It was absolutely useless at long range, but against Sith it would be deadly. Steve was also equipped with the same pistol as well as a light saber. It seemed that despite all of his complaining, he enjoyed using the light saber as well. We were ready regardless and it was time.

As I approached them I cleared my mind so as to eliminate any suspicion. Before I could reach them though, a cranky old Sith women insisted that I serve her first. I had to resist the temptation to slice off her head in that very moment. After what seemed like forever I finally made my way back to the couple. The bride appeared to be deeply in love as she gazed deeply into his eyes. I honestly couldn't tell what she saw in him. Out of all the Sith here he seemed to be the ugliest. Maybe she was attracted to his strength, the comms officer did say the uglier the Sith, the more powerful. Perhaps when this is all over I will ask Steve, he seems to have a greater understanding of women then I ever have. Of course that's assuming we both survive this. I presented the glass of wine to the Sith. He snatched it up quickly and began to chuck it down. In one quick fluid motion I sliced off the bride's head and shot the Sith in the face. Three of the laser blast's missed as he attempted to dodge the blast; however one of shot's made contact and completely lobotomized him. I sliced off the Sith's head for good measure. Unfortunately, when attempting to slice off the bride's head cleanly she had moved her head to lie on her husband's shoulder. This lead to only half of her head sliced off. It was quite gruesome really. I looked over to see Steve promptly taking care of the old women from before. Two were down and now there was only four to go. However, the Sith were now very much aware this was an ambush. Things were going to be a whole lot harder from this point on.

While the crowded nature of the room let us hide the soldiers easier, it also provided lots of cover and throwing objects for the Sith. Tables were thrown every direction and the expensive artifacts were now being used as glorified artillery shells. Even the large chandelier was broken off the ceiling and thrown across the room. An expert marksman would have trouble landing a shot, let alone rejects from the basic infantry. Ten soldiers were already dead from being either crushed by artifact, taking a light saber to the gut, or worst of all being 'Forced lightening' to death. If I didn't do something quick we soon wouldn't have any soldiers left. I saw a group of ten soldiers recovering from a giant statue nearly crushing them. A Sith was approaching them, his hand sparking with blue electricity. I sprinted as fast as I could and only just blocked the lightning in time. The light saber blocked the majority of the lightning, but some of the sparks still managed to hit my suit. It was extremely painful, but I held my ground. He continued to pour more and more lightning onto my light saber. My arms began to strain from the force, but I held on. I had to. Finally he let up and the lightning was gone. I fired a blast at his face and moved to his left simultaneously. He reflected the blast an inch away from my face and swung his blade diagonally at me. I parried the blow and fired another blast at his chest. This time he Forced blocked it with his hands. We continued like this for another minute, I was keeping up, but my endurance and speed just couldn't match up to his. I wasn't sure how long I would last. Finally the group of soldiers got their act together and began shooting at the Sith. I took a couple breaths while the pressure was elevated. While resting though, one of them accidently shot me twice in the leg. I wanted to kill the idiot, but now was not the time. I looked over to see Steve coordinating more men to attack my opponent. He was quickly getting overwhelmed. In a last ditch attempt he swung his blade over his head down on top of me. I parried the blow, pressed my gun to his head, and blew his brains out. I looked over his dead body and couldn't help but whisper "I'm the Force Slayer bitch!"

Three were down and there were three more to go, I thought to myself. I was currently resting behind a table. My leg was still sore from the shots I took. I looked over to see that the men were still being over whelmed. I couldn't stop now. I limped over to another Sith. This time it was a woman, who seemed to have an affinity for slicing off heads. She was about to slice off another when I parried the blow. She snarled at me and began to swing her blade at me aggressively. Her speed and ferocity forced me to drop my gun just to keep my light saber up. Each of her swings pushed me farther and farther back. I would already be dead if she didn't have to reflect the incoming blasts coming from behind her. The blasts stopped being directed at her though and immediately she forced pushed me into a wall. The impact caused me drop my light saber. She grinned at me and swung her light saber at my head. However, it was her head that fell to the floor and not mine. I looked over to see Steve standing over her body, his green light saber at his side.

"Thanks, Steve." I sputtered out. I was still trying to catch my breath.

"Honestly sir, just how many times I'm I going to have to save your life" Steve smirked as he threw my gun back at me. It would have been wittier if he didn't struggle for breath between each word. I saw him walk over to another large group of men and coordinate another attack on another Sith. After repeated coordinated strikes the Sith finally fell. There was only one left now. However, to my surprise, this was the most powerful one. He moved with unbelievable speed, even for a Sith. It wasn't long until we had only 20 soldiers left. I was in no condition to fight, but I had to do something. I limped slowly, hiding behind tables and whatever else I could find. When I was close enough I took a shot at his head. He blocked it easily. His face was oozing with anger as he glared me. Well at least I had gotten his attention. That turned out to be an incredibly horrible idea. Using the Force he crushed my armor against my body, struck me with lightning and even attacked my mind. It was excruciating beyond all belief. I looked over to see if Steve could help me, but he had just barely dodged a light saber flying towards him. So was this the end? Would I die at a wedding of all places? I never had any delusions of living to an old age, but to die here. Perhaps it was the universe playing a joke on me, or better yet maybe it was the Force who was the joker.

What I didn't realize is that even though Steve and I were preoccupied there were still 20 soldiers surrounding us. With all of his attention focused on delivering as much pain as possible towards me he had no way to stop the massive wave of blasts heading towards him. He fell to the ground riddled with laser blasts. The soldiers made their way to a hidden ship, while Steve and I were secretly whisked away by secret agents from the Captain. Before I fell asleep I heard on the radio that a Republic ship was shot down. There were no survivors. The Captain wasn't kidding when he said they wouldn't be able to answer any questions.

I woke up a week later in a transport ship. I took off my shirt to see plenty of new scars to add to my collection. I tried to move but every muscle was crying out in agony. I looked over to see Steve in almost as much pain as I was. I also saw the Captain and the comms officer staring at me.

"I must commend you lieutenant, the mission was a complete successes." The Captain said sincerely.

"Yes, according to our calculations we expected none of the soldiers to survive. It seems that your 'three eyes' battle tactic was more effective than expected. Though the idea of four soldiers defeating a Sith is still absolutely ridiculous..." The Captain interrupted the comms officer before he could go on.

"Now, now officer, we don't want to be insulting the lieutenant. He has gone above our expectations and we should show our respect."

"Of course sir, I meant no offence." The comms officer said quickly to the Captain. The Captain simply nodded and headed towards the cockpit. After the Captain left I began to recall the events at the wedding.

"I thought you said the uglier the Sith is the more powerful they are!" I growled at the comms officer. He seemed surprised.

"Wait you actually believed that? You're more gullible than I thought." I wanted to strangle him, but I barely move my hands let alone my arms. I eventually calmed down and noticed a couple of technicians laughing in a corner.

"What are they laughing about?"

"Oh that's right you haven't seen it. Here let me show you, you're quite the celebrity now." The comms officer showed me a video recording. It showed what 'happened' at the wedding. They made me out to be a super villain. I was shown slicing off heads, force choking innocent visitors, and causing massive destruction. Instead of whispering, I was shown declaring loudly that I was 'The Force Slayer'. The largest bounty in the entire Empire was on the Force Slayer and his apprentice. I've always done what I could to increase my chances of survival and now I was in more danger than ever. Yet despite being in incredible pain and the risk of death higher than ever, I couldn't help but feel powerful. I was now one of the most feared people in the galaxy. I was the Force Slayer.

_Disclaimer: I am aware that grammar is not my strong suit and I have been looking for a beta reader to no avail. If anyone is interested or knows someone who may be please message me. Hope you enjoyed the chapter. _


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Star Wars, Adventure, Sci-Fi